Top Ballet Stars Perform During September’s XXII International Ballet Festival Miami Opening Event
Highlights Include Performances, Workshops, and Theatrical Choreography
Miami, FL
Talented performers from South Florida and Cuba’s most elite training programs danced new work by choreographer Isanusi Garcia Rodriguez during the opening performances of Program I of the XXII International Ballet Festival of Miami.
A female duet, by Jessie Marrero Muino and Diana Figueroa, was inspired by the vibrant music and culture of Miami and the rich history of the Cuban people here in America. Mr. Rodriguez also performed a visceral solo work with corrosive emotion about a man contemplating life during his final hours collaborating with Pedro Padro Pena, Creative Director of the Festival, to close the first half of Program I.
After the intermission, Rodriguez performed as the only male in an ensemble piece with ‘Las Havaneras’ which seemed to allude to the ‘women in white’ who’ve become famous for protesting the incarceration of male prisoners of conscience, many of them their husbands.
Program I also featured lustrous performances from Atlanta Professional Dance Company, featuring mostly Asian styled brilliant costumes, patterned flourishes of fans, and captivating choreography from a young ensemble of approximately thirty women.
Ballet Inc, from New York City, prepared two riveting male-female duets that were darkly passionate, thought provoking and incredibly physical by Artistic Director, Aaron Atkins.
Hurricane Irma postponed a stunning line up of companies from France, New York and Africa for the Program II of the Festival at the Wynwood Art District at the The Light Box at Goldman Warehouse September 9.
Yet, Choreographer and Dance Artist Rodriguez, a former Principal Dancer with Miami City Ballet for ten years and now an emerging Painter, who was scheduled to perform again in Wynwood for Program II, relished the fact that he is a walking miracle. He recovered from a stroke that left him half-paralyzed over 4 years ago. “I feel very blessed and am super excited to showcase my new work,” said Rodriguez. The reaction of the audience to Program I was palpable as they asked ‘Is that it? When is the next program?’
The 22 International Ballet Festival of Miami is organized by the Miami Hispanic Cultural Arts Center under the Artistic Direction of Pedro Pablo Peña. The final Program VI is scheduled for September 30, 2017 and features an incredible array of international classical ballet companies at the Miami Dade County Auditorium.
Find out more and purchase tickets visit www.internationalballetfestival.org/schedule-tickets.
Proceeds support the Miami Hispanic Ballet and Miami Hispanic Cultural Arts Center, the organizers of this multi-state multi-venue cultural event. The event is sponsored in part by Grace Arts FL which is also supporting a presentation by ZEST Collective later this year (originally scheduled for the Wynwood Program II) thanks to a generous grant from Florida Division of Cultural Affairs. Photos courtesy of artists.
To find out more about planned adaptations of Shakespeare’s full length plays of ‘Romeo and Juliet’ and ‘The Tempest’ — which served an inspiration for the Program I performances — incorporating Florida history into a two hour epic dance and theatrical performance featuring ballet, hip hop and contemporary dance, original musical score and live mural productions, planned for release in 2018, please contact project producer, Clare Vickery at 954.816.3324.
To schedule an interview with one of the artists: Please contact publicist Tandi Wilder at She Got Game Media (305) 520–9703 or sggmedia305@gmail.com.
FINAL PROGRAM VI ARTISTS:
Performance scheduled for September 30, 2017
