​Ballet School of Stamford Presents 'Alice in Wonderland'

From The Ballet School of Stamford: The Ballet School of Stamford will present its 17th annual Spring Performance of Alice in Wonderland, an original ballet based on the beloved Lewis Carroll story, on Friday, May 26th at 7:00 p.m. at The Palace Theatre in Stamford, Connecticut. Join Alice as she follows a white rabbit down a garden hole where things get curiouser and curiouser. While in Wonderland, Alice encounters the Mad Hatter, Queen of Hearts, the Tweedles and many strange creatures including the Chesire Cat, Caterpillar and Dormouse. Confusion piles upon confusion until Alice wakes with a start, realizing it was her imagination that took her on this magical journey.

As part of the performance, advanced dancers will perform variations from Paquita, a famous classical ballet created by Marius Petipa in 1847. It has been staged for this performance by Assistant Artistic Director Heather Hawk. Additionally, young dancers from The Ballet School of Stamford will have their moment in the sun as they perform Studio to Stage, choreographed by faculty member Lauren Etter.

Guest Artist Alison Cook Beatty Dance will perform TINTINNABULI, which premiered at The Joyce Theater in 2012, commissioned by Ballet Next. An excerpt for two dancers will be performed by Carolina Rivera and Artistic Director Alison Cook-Beatty, with music by Arvo Pärt, Tabula Rasa. Alison Cook Beatty Dance is based in New York City and is celebrating it’s fifth year. It is a classically based modern dance company exploring the human condition through expansive and emotionally driven movement grounded in American modern dance. The healing and transformational power of the arts inspires the company to work with diverse groups within the community, in addition to collaborative efforts with other artists. Under the artistic direction of Alison Cook-Beatty, her choreography has been commissioned by professional companies and universities such as Ballet Next for its Joyce Theater season, Columbia Ballet Collaborative, and The Boston Conservatory at Berklee. The company has toured throughout the United States. Locally, the company has performed at New York Live Arts, Ailey Citigroup Theater, Jazz at Lincoln Center, the 92nd Street Y, The Martha Graham Studio Theater, The Theater at The 14th Street Y, Battery Dance Festival, and Gibney Dance POP Performance Series, The Milford Fine Arts Center and other performance venues.

As part of The Ballet School of Stamford’s ongoing commitment to the community, the school will hold a FREE 10 a.m.performance for 1,500 local elementary school children. Over 20,000 students have attended the schools performances since 2001. The 7 p.m. performance will be open to the public and tickets are available at the Palace Theatre box office by phone at 203-325-4466 and website www.scalive.org. Ticket prices range from $10 to $50. Benefit tickets including a pre-reception are available and will support the school’s scholarship program that has awarded over $100,000 in needs-based scholarships to deserving students this year. Sponsorship opportunities are also available.

The Ballet School of Stamford was founded to provide excellent dance training for all children in the spring of 1998 with 50 students and no permanent home. Currently, there are 280 students ages three to 18 who study classical ballet, theater dance, and modern who are enrolled at the school and in its outreach program “Dance for All” at the school’s studios in Stamford’s historic Old Town Hall. The school collaborates with other city arts organizations and partners with social service agencies to provide opportunities for children who otherwise could not afford to study dance. The Ballet School of Stamford is a 501-C3 organization. Please call 203-358-8853 or email Marti Etter, Executive Director, at martietter@mac.com for more information.

Image Courtesy of The Ballet School of Stamford