Grand Rapids Ballet is pleased to announce our 2022-23 Season: What Lifts Your Spirit. Our season offers awe-inspiring movement sure to please all audiences, featuring contemporary creations and timeless classics. As the curtain closes on our 50th Anniversary, Grand Rapids Ballet looks ahead to the next 50 years of dance in our community asking audience members to share, what lifts your spirit?
Grand Rapids Ballet’s dancers are ready to welcome new generations of audiences to the art of dance, under the direction of Artistic Director James Sofranko and Executive Director Glenn Del Vecchio. Our What Lifts Your Spirit season offers classical ballet favorites, including The Nutcracker and Romeo and Juliet at DeVos Performance Hall, and contemporary works at our Peter Martin Wege Theatre, including Elemental Movement, Jumpstart 2023, and Ballet + Broadway. We invite you to explore our full season below!
2022 also marks a special milestone for Grand Rapids Ballet School’s Junior Company as we celebrate 10 years under the direction of Attila Mosolygo. To commemorate this occasion, we are proud to present two sensational productions, Spooktacular and Wizard of Oz, both at our very own Peter Martin Wege Theatre.
Our 2022-23 season is open to new and current subscribers! Individual tickets to all of our 2022-23 season performances will be available through the Grand Rapids Ballet Box Office and Ticketmaster in the months ahead. Until then, explore our performance dates and times below and mark your calendars for this can’t-miss season!
Summer Series | August 2022
Soak up the stunning Michigan summer evenings as you enjoy Grand Rapids Ballet at various outdoor venues ahead of our official season launch in October. Our dancers will perform under the colorful evening skies, featuring a return to Studio Park on Friday, August 19. Featured works will include James Sofranko’s Mozart Symphony, an excerpt from Sofranko’s A Dreamer, the pas de deux from Romeo & Juliet, and selected works from Jumpstart 2022. Our dancers will return to the amphitheater at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park on August 30. Featured works will include Katarzyna Skarpetowska’s Off the Canvas, Balanchine’s Serenade, and excerpts from James Sofranko’s Romeo and Juliet.
Our Summer Series is generously sponsored by Varnum LLP
See Performance Locations:
Elemental Movement | October 14-16, 2022
At Peter Martin Wege Theatre
Elemental Movement features three ballets, exploring movement in different spaces in which our dancers draw energy from the music and one another. Elemental Brubeck, choreographed by modern dance master Lar Lubovitch, set to an orchestral score from iconic jazz composer Dave Brubeck, features the dancers in movement that recalls popular dances of the 1950s. Elemental Movement also features a world premiere from in-demand choreographer Danielle Rowe, in partnership with New York City-based Satellite Collective, entitled Liar Lear King, which loosely tells the story of Shakespeare’s King Lear through contemporary movement and music, set in New York City in the 1970s. The performance also will include a reprise of Katarzyna Skarpetowska’s Off the Canvas from the 2021-22 season, with music by Adrian Lim-Klumpes and Vivaldi, bringing to life Cy Twombly’s “Bacchus” paintings.
Liar Lear King is underwritten by the Grand Rapids Ballet New Works Fund.
See Performance Dates and Times:
The Nutcracker | December 9-11 & 16-18, 2022
At DeVos Performance Hall
Get into the holiday spirit as Grand Rapids Ballet dancers grace the stage at DeVos Performance Hall for our annual production of The Nutcracker! Enjoy captivating choreography by Val Caniparoli before a magical and immersive set, imagined by Grand Rapidian Chris Van Allsburg, designed by world-famous Eugene Lee. Join the elegant Sugar Plum Fairy and her gallant Cavalier as they guide Clara through the Land of the Sweets. Along the way, meet menacing mice and brave soldiers in an epic Battle Scene, and join festive celebrations as Clara is mesmerized with a fantastic waltz with live accompaniment from the Grand Rapids Symphony to Tchaikovsky’s magical score.
The Nutcracker is generously sponsored by Foster Swift and Meijer.
See Performance Dates and Times:
Romeo & Juliet | February 17-19, 2023
At DeVos Performance Hall
Fall in love with Shakespeare’s classic story, Romeo and Juliet, as Grand Rapids Ballet presents World Premiere choreography by Artistic Director James Sofranko, set in Renaissance Verona on the stage at DeVos Performance Hall. Be captivated by the romantic tragedy featuring the famous feuding families, the Montagues and Capulets. The Grand Rapids Symphony performs Prokofiev’s ravishing score as the timeless story comes to life with enthralling sword fighting, the excitement of young love, all leading towards an emotional end.
See Performance Dates and Times:
Jumpstart 2022 | March 24-26, 2023
At Peter Martin Wege Theatre
Grand Rapids Ballet’s Company dancers push beyond the edge of choreographic exploration for our annual Jumpstart performance. Company dancers explore their creative energies, stepping into the role of choreographer, building experimental programs for other dancers. Jumpstart 2023 also will feature an excerpt of Three Offerings by Darrell Grand Moultrie. Jumpstart 2023 is a can’t miss event!
Jumpstart 2023 is generously sponsored by Dave Schmidt and Robert Oracz.
See Performance Dates and Times:
Friday, March 24, 2023
- Evening performance at 7:30 p.m. | Get Tickets
Saturday, March 25, 2023
- Evening performance at 7:30 p.m. | Get Tickets
Sunday, March 26, 2023
- Matinee performance at 2 p.m. | Get Tickets
Ballet + Broadway | April 21-23 & 28-30, 2023
At Peter Martin Wege Theatre
There’s no business like show business! Ballet + Broadway, features three theatrically themed works, taking inspiration from “The Great White Way.” Remember Our Song, from Tony Award winner and Kennedy Center Award recipient Andy Blankenbuehler, choreographer of Hamilton, depicts the challenges of a love story a world apart, set during World War II featuring the big band music of the 1940s. Who Cares?, choreographed by George Balanchine, who also worked on Broadway, is an iconic work created originally for New York City Ballet, featuring famous tunes by George Gershwin such as “I’ve Got Rhythm” and “Embraceable You.” The final work, Jump Cut, is a World Premiere by Grand Rapids Ballet Resident Choreographer Penny Saunders, with inspiration from the Golden Age of old Hollywood.
See Performance Dates and Times:
GRAND RAPIDS BALLET SCHOOL JUNIOR COMPANY 2022-23 SEASON
2022 marks a special milestone for Grand Rapids Ballet School’s Junior Company as we celebrate 10 years under the direction of Attila Mosolygo. To commemorate this occasion, we are proud to present two sensational productions, Spooktacular, taking place on the most spooky weekend of the year, October 28-30, and Wizard of Oz, March 10-12 and 18-19, both at our very own Peter Martin Wege Theatre. We invite you to learn more about both of these performances below!
Spooktacular | October 28-30, 2022
At Peter Martin Wege Theatre
This Halloweekend, don’t miss Grand Rapids Ballet School Junior Company’s Spooktacular! With witches, mummies, tricks, and treats – a hauntingly good time awaits at this special Halloween ballet with choreography by Junior Company Artistic Director Attila Mosolygo.
On Halloween night, a young girl’s only wish is to trick or treat with her older sister and her friends. When they refuse to let the youngin tag along, she embarks on a mischievous plan to get their candy. Follow the adventures in their neighborhood with appearances by skeletons, Martians, Frankenstein, and even the Addams Family! This is creepy-crawly fun for the whole family. We invite you to join in the spooky fun by coming in costume, too!
See Performance Dates and Times:
Wizard of Oz | March 10-12 and 18-19, 2023
At Peter Martin Wege Theatre
Bring your entire family and venture down the yellow brick road to Oz with Dorothy, the Cowardly Lion, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow, and the Wicked Witch of the West for Grand Rapids Ballet School Junior Company’s production of the classic tale, The Wizard of Oz!
Somewhere over the rainbow, the beloved four-legged friend, Toto might even show up, too, but beware of those pesky flying monkeys for this family-friendly ballet! Though there’s no place like home, Wizard of Oz is taking place at our very own home theater, the Peter Martin Wege Theatre.
Wizard of Oz is generously sponsored by Warner Norcross + Judd.
See Performance Dates and Times:
Friday, March 10, 2023
- Evening performance at 7:30 p.m. | Get Tickets
Saturday, March 11, 2023
- Matinee performance at 2 p.m. | Get Tickets
Sunday, March 12, 2023
- Matinee performance at 2 p.m. | Get Tickets
Saturday, March 18, 2023
- Matinee performance at 2 p.m. | Get Tickets
Sunday, March 19, 2023
- Matinee performance at 2 p.m. | Get Tickets
SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS
At this time, face masks or coverings will be optional for guests attending Grand Rapids Ballet performances, though they remain highly recommended. Additionally, we will no longer require proof of vaccination status or a negative Covid-19 test. Learn more.
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