New York City Center Presents Barcelona Ballet

Barcelona Ballet (formerly known as Corella Ballet) returns to New York City Center April 17 – 20 for a second engagement following several U.S. tours. Artistic Director Ángel Corella will dance with his company in the world premiere of Pálpito, a full-company ballet by Ángel Rojas and Carlos Rodriguez. The program also features Clark Tippet's Bruch Violin Concerto and Christopher Wheeldon's For 4. 

"2012 comes with an exciting change for my company," Corella said, "something that I have been working on since the creation of the Ángel Corella Foundation in 2001: the establishment of Spain's only classical ballet company in Barcelona. With this move comes a new name for the company, Barcelona Ballet. The company is the same only it now has a new home and a new name. I created the company for the dancers and the audiences of Spain and not for myself, so I think it fitting that the company take on the name of one of the greatest cities in the world. All major European cities have a classical ballet company: Paris, London, Berlin and now Barcelona." 

THE 2012 BARCELONA BALLET SEASONAT City Center:

Pálpito, by Ãngel Rojas and Carlos Rodríguez, (world premiere) is a full-company classical ballet that integrates classical ballet and traditional Spanish dance, with original musical composition by Héctor Gonzalez.

Ángel Rojas and Carlos Rodríguez, Artistic Directors of Nuevo Ballet Español. won first place at the Spanish annual dance and flamenco choreography awards in 1994 when they were still teenagers. Two years later, the duo established Nuevo Ballet Español to keep the traditions of flamenco alive into the 21st century. Since that time, the company has toured four continents and performed to sold-out houses.

Clark Tippet's Bruch Violin Concerto (1987) combines drama, complex choreography and duets of great athleticism, featuring seven Principal Dancers and a Corps of 16.

Clark Tippet (1955–1992), a dancer and choreographer, was a member of the American Ballet Theatre from 1972 to 1978, during which time he was promoted to Soloist in 1975 and Principal Dancer in 1976. He choreographed his first piece, Enough Said, in 1986. During his choreographic career Tippet choreographed five ballets for ABT and other works for Pacific Northwest Ballet and Kansas City Ballet. 

Christopher Wheeldon's For 4 is a quartet set to Franz Schubert's Death and the Maiden. The work, which was originally created for Kings of Dance, explores moving as a chorus and as an individual through the use of technique, virtuosity and artistic interpretation.   

Christopher Wheeldon has created ballets for companies all over the world, including The Royal Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet, San Francisco Ballet and Boston Ballet, to name a few. He co-founded Morphoses/The Wheeldon Company and served as its Artistic Director from 2007 to 2010. From 2001 to 2008 Mr. Wheeldon was Resident Choreographer for the New York City Ballet, where he created 17 ballets.

Barcelona Ballet (formerly Corella Ballet), founded by American Ballet Theatre's principal dancer, Angel Corella, is the only classical ballet company in Spain. Corella created the Angel Corella Foundation in 2001, with two principle missions: to create a world-class ballet company that would provide a place for Spanish dancers to develop their art form, an opportunity that had not been available to them in over 20 years; and to create a ballet school that would integrate academic and artistic studies, including a full-time residence and would provide financial aide to those in need. Plans for the opening of the school are now in its final stages. The company has toured to all major theaters in Spain and has toured internationally to the U.S., Mexico, Morocco, Italy, France and Portugal among others. 

The 2012 Barcelona Ballet New York City Center Season runs Tuesday, April 17 – Friday, April 20 at New York City Center (West 55th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues). Tuesday and Wednesday performances are at 7:30 p.m., and Thursday and Friday performances are at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $25 and are currently on sale. Tickets can be purchased online at www.NYCityCenter.org, by calling CityTix at 212.581.1212, or at the City Center Box Office.