Miami City Ballet Presents Season Finale Program

Miami City Ballet's Program Four features the company premiere of Alexei Ratmansky's acclaimed Concerto DSCH. In addition, the Program presents two of George Balanchine's classic ballets, including his first great masterwork, Apollo, as well as the haunting La Valse.

In the wake of his triumphant The Fairy's Kiss, comes the company premiere of Alexei Ratmansky's Concerto DSCH, the amazingly inventive ballet, set to a seething Dmitri Shostakovich piano concerto. Alastair Macaulay of The New York Times had this to say about the ballet: "Its dances pour forth in a continuous stream of galvanizing excitement and affectionate intimacy...The most captivating classical ballet I have seen in years."

The 2017/18 season finale program also showcases two Balanchine classics, Apollo and La Valse. Apollo, Balanchine's first great masterwork, literally transformed the art of 20th-century ballet. With its neoclassical approach to dance, this narrative ballet follows the young god of music, beauty and light, and three muses - Calliope, Polyhymnia and Terpsichore, the muse of dance - who compete for his attentions as they dance to Igor Stravinsky's supremely elegant score.

Finally, La Valse takes place in a dark and mysterious ballroom, where 34 dancers waltz to gripping music by Maurice Ravel that projects a mood of impending doom. The haunting work culminates with the appearance of the dark figure of Death, who claims the life of a woman in white as horrified onlookers swirl about her upraised body.

Miami City Ballet performs in three locations across South Florida: Palm Beach, Miami-Dade, and Broward counties. Program Four, featuring the company premiere of Ratmansky's Concerto DSCH, will be performed as follows:

April 6 - 8 Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, West Palm Beach

April 13 - 15 Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, Miami

April 28 - 29 Broward Center for the Performing Arts, Fort Lauderdale

Following the Program Four season closer, Miami City Ballet is looking ahead to performances at two world-class cultural festivals. The company will open Charleston's 42nd Spoleto Festival USA on May 25 before traveling overseas to Paris for performances at the prestigious Les Etés de la Danse Festival, June 28 - 30.

TICKETS: Tickets to Program Four start at $25 and are available at Miami City Ballet's box office, by calling 305.929.7010 or 877.929.7010 (Monday - Friday, 10 am - 5 pm) or online at miamicityballet.org.

ABOUT MIAMI CITY BALLET: Miami City Ballet, now in its 32nd season, has been led by Artistic Director Lourdes Lopez since 2012. Lopez was recently named one of "The Most Influential People in Dance Today" by Dance Magazine. MCB was founded in 1985 by Miami philanthropist Toby Lerner Ansin and Founding Artistic Director Edward Villella.The Company has 51 dancers and a repertoire of more than 100 ballets. MCB performs for nearly 100,000 patrons annually during its South Florida home season in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Naples, and tours to top theaters domestically and internationally.

Miami City Ballet School, the official school of Miami City Ballet, is one of the most respected ballet training academies in America. The School's renowned faculty, challenging syllabus and affiliation with Miami City Ballet make it a place where all students - from children to adults - can receive comprehensive dance training. The School trains approximately 400 students, ages 3-18, in its year- round program, and 400 during its summer programs, granting nearly $500,000 in scholarships annually. More than 500 adults participate in a vibrant community division.

Miami City Ballet is headquartered in Miami Beach, Fla., at the Ophelia & Juan Js. Roca Center, a facility designed by renowned architectural firm Arquitectonica.

MIAMI CITY BALLET - HOME THEATER ADDRESSES:

Kravis Center for the Performing Arts Alexander W. Dreyfoos, Jr. Concert Hall 701 Okeechobee Boulevard West Palm Beach, FL 33401

Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County Ziff Ballet Opera House 1300 Biscayne Boulevard Miami, FL 33132

Broward Center for the Performing Arts Au-Rene Theater 201 S.W. Fifth Avenue Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33312 FUNDING

FUNDING:

Major funding for Miami City Ballet is provided by the Ford Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Louis B. Mayer Foundation and The Shubert Foundation. Miami City Ballet is sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs, and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture. Miami-Dade County support is provided by Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council, the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners with additional support provided by the City of Miami Beach, Cultural Affairs program, and the Cultural Arts Council. Palm Beach County support is provided in part by the Board of County Commissioners, the Tourist Development Council and the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County. Broward County funding is provided in part by the Broward County Board of County Commissioners as recommended by the Broward Cultural Council and Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Miami City Ballet is a registered trademark of Miami City Ballet, Inc.