Natalia Osipova & Ivan Vasiliev to Return to Segerstrom Center 7/25-27

Segerstrom Center for the Arts welcomes the return of dance superstars Natalia Osipova and Ivan Vasiliev in just four performances from July 25 - 27. The program, titled Solo for Two, includes a world premiere commissioned for them by the Center and two works new to their repertoires and never seen before in the United States. Osipova and Vasiliev have enthralled audiences with their incomparable talent and irresistible personalities, capturing the admiration and imaginations of dance audiences around the world. At the Center, they have appeared in Don Quixote with the Bolshoi Ballet in 2010, in the 2009 Tour de Force dance gala and Reflections in 2011. In 2012, Osipova returned to the Center, starring in the world premiere of Alexei Ratmansky's production of Firebird for American Ballet Theatre. In 2011, Vasiliev danced in the second Kings of the Dance.

Solo for Two will begin with an extract from MEA CULPA, a full-length ballet by the award-winning Belgian choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui. The music is by Heinrich Schu?tz and will be performed live by a chamber ensemble conducted by Franc?oise Lasserre. Next is PASSO, choreographed by Ohad Naharin, artistic director of Batsheva Dance Company, danced to the British electronic music duo Autechre (Sean Booth and Rob Brown) and English traditional folk music. The evening concludes with FACADA by Portuguese choreographer Arthur Pita, performed to live music by Frank Moon, Phil King and traditional Portuguese fado played by Frank Moon. FACADA has been adapted for Solo for Two from Pita's God's Garden. Osipova and Vasiliev will portray the roles of The Bride and The Groom, respectively, and former New York City Ballet star Patricia Neary will be the Lady in Black.

Roslyn Sulcas, dance critic for The New York Times, will conduct preview talks one hour to each performance. She has written for British Dance Theatre Journal and was the Paris correspondent for Dance & Dancers, Dance Magazine and Dance International. Her dance blog can be found at artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/author/roslyn-sulcas.

Solo for Two is a co-production by Segerstrom Center for the Arts and Ardani Artists. Sergei Danilian is executive producer. Following the Center performances, the program will be performed at the Stanislavsky Musical Theater in Moscow (July 31 - August 3, 2014), in London at the Coliseum (August 6 - 9, 2015) and New York City Center (March 7 & 8, 2015).