Home & + | Search
Featured Categories: Special Focus | Performance Reviews | Previews | DanceSpots | Arts and Education | Press Releases
Join ExploreDance.com's email list | Mission Statement | Copyright notice | The Store | Calendar | User survey | Advertise
Click here to take the ExploreDance.com user survey.
Your anonymous feedback will help us continue to bring you coverage of more dance.
SPOTLIGHT:
PRESS RELEASES
ExploreDance.com (Magazine)
Web
Other Search Options
Michelle Tabnick
Performance Programs
Press Releases
Latin
Modern/Contemporary
Queens Theatre in the Park
United States
New York City
Queens (NY)
New York
Flushing (Queens), NY

Ballet Hispanico at Queens Theatre, Feb. 14-15

by Michelle Tabnick
February 13, 2015
Queens Theatre in the Park
Flushing Meadows Corona Park
Flushing (Queens), NY 11351
(718) 760-0064
Ballet Hispanico, recognized as the nation's leading Latino dance organization since 1970, will present a quartet of audience favorites at Queens Theatre on February 14-15, 2015. Performances: Saturday at 2pm and 8pm, Sunday at 3pm. Tickets start at $25 and are on sale now at www.queenstheatre.org.

Making a triumphant return to Queens following last year's engagement at the Kupferberg Center for the Arts, Ballet Hispanico is a world-class phenomenon, having offered over 3,000 performances to audiences of more than 3 million people throughout eleven countries. The extraordinary lineup of works, curated by Eduardo Vilaro in his fifth year as Artistic Director of Ballet Hispanico, features "El Beso," a stunning work by Spanish native Gustavo Ramírez Sansano with original costumes by internationally renowned fashion designer Angel Sanchez. Other highlights include "Sombrerísimo," Belgo-Colombian Annabelle Lopez Ochoa's athletic tour de force for six male dancers; "Sortijas," by Cayetano Soto, one of the most dynamic and groundbreaking Spanish choreographers of his generation; and Eduardo Vilaro's "Asuka," a celebration of the music of Queen of Salsa Celia Cruz.

Leading up to the engagement, the pre-professional second company of Ballet Hispanico, BHdos, will conduct a special performance for school audiences on Friday, February 13, 2015. Narrated by Eduardo Vilaro and Ballet Hispanico Director of Education AnaMaria Correa, these educational Performances for Young People—now in their 30th year—give children access to the Ballet Hispanico experience and are followed by a Q&A with the dancers.

Ballet Hispanico at Queens Theatre– February 14-15, 2015

El Beso (2014)
Choreography by Gustavo Ramírez Sansano
Spaniard Gustavo Ramírez Sansano's first work for Ballet Hispanico is a spirited look at the nuances of a kiss set to Spanish Zarzuela music and featuring original costumes by Venezuelan fashion designer Angel Sanchez.

Sombrerísimo (2013)
Choreography by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa
An absorbing exploration of identity, Sombrerísimo references the surrealist world of the Belgian painter René Magritte, famous for his paintings of men in bowler hats. This athletic work for six male dancers was commissioned by New York City Center for the 10th anniversary of the Fall for Dance Festival.

Sortijas (2013)
Choreography by Cayetano Soto
Cayetano Soto, one of the most dynamic and groundbreaking Spanish choreographers of his generation, is known for his musicality, attention to detailed technique, and expressive choreography. In Sortijas, a darkly lush duet full of emotional complexity, he ponders the unavoidable pull of fate in our lives. Costume design is by Munich-based fashion designers Talbot Runhof. Music by Lhasa de Sela.

Asuka (2011)
Choreography by Eduardo Vilaro
Asuka is a celebration of the music of Celia Cruz through the lens of the Latino experience. Cruz, renowned as the "Queen of Salsa," captured the heart of Latinos the world over and became a symbol of perseverance for many. Through rich imagery and humor, Artistic Director Eduardo Vilaro explores the struggles of departure from one's homeland and the exuberance of success experienced by a community.

ABOUT BALLET HISPANICO

Celebrating 44 years of dance and culture, Ballet Hispanico is recognized as the nation's premier Latino dance organization. Led by Artistic Director Eduardo Vilaro, the Company boasts a rich and diverse repertory of over 100 works by the foremost choreographers and emerging artists of our time. The works expand on founder Tina Ramirez's legacy of exploring the diversity of Latino culture through a fusion of Latin and contemporary dance powered by theatricality and passion. The Company has performed for an audience of nearly 3 million, throughout 11 countries, on 3 continents. For more information, visit www.ballethispanico.org. Follow Ballet Hispanico on Facebook and Twitter.

EDUARDO VILARO, a first generation Cuban-American, began as artistic director of Ballet Hispanico in August of 2009, becoming only the second person to head the company since it was founded in 1970. Mr. Vilaro has been part of the Ballet Hispanico family since 1985. As a dancer with the Ballet Hispanico Company, he performed throughout the U.S., Latin America and Europe and assisted founder Tina Ramirez with the development of dance education residencies. Mr. Vilaro is also an accomplished choreographer, having created works for the Ravinia Festival, the Chicago Sinfonietta, the Lexington Ballet, the Civic Ballet of Chicago, and over 20 ballets for Luna Negra Dance Theater, the company he founded in Chicago. He received a B.F.A. in Dance from Adelphi University and an M.A. in Interdisciplinary Art from Columbia College Chicago, where he served as Artist-in-Residence at The Dance Center. Mr. Vilaro was a guest speaker at the Salzburg Global Forum for Young Cultural Leaders and the National Association for Latino Arts and Culture, and continues to speak to the growing need for cultural diversity and dance education.

BALLET HISPANICO
Queens Theatre, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, 14 United Nations Avenue South, Queens, NYC
Saturday, February 14 at 2pm & 8pm, and Sunday February 15 at 3pm
Tickets start at $25 and are available for purchase in person at the Queens Theatre, by phone at (718) 760-0064, or online at queenstheatre.org. Ticket prices are subject to change.
Search for articles by
Performance Reviews, Places to Dance, Fashion, Photography, Auditions, Politics, Health