THE ASHEVILLE BALLET’S FINAL PERFORMANCE OF 2005-06 SEASON

THE FIREBIRD and ANNA!

Contact: Ann Dunn (828) 258-1028

ann.dunn@mindspring.com

The Asheville Ballet, Ann Dunn Director, presents a double bill for its final performance of the 2005-06 Season. The great Russian classical ballet, The Firebird, will be paired with the thrilling contemporary ballet, ANNA!, complete with the vibrant sound of the rock band, Stephanie’s Id, playing live in the pit, joined by the ever-popular local female group, Menage. This spectacular evening of dance and music, appropriate for the whole family, will be performed May 11-13 at 7:30 at Diana Wortham Theatre. Tickets range from $25-40 for adults, $20-35 for students, and $15 for all children. For reservations call the Box office at 252-4761. As a special incentive, the company is offering half-price tickets on Thursday night for anyone with a LEAF ticket. Call Dunn at (828) 258-1028 for information on other group rates.

By showcasing ballet and modern/jazz with live music on the same program, Dunn continues the Asheville Ballet mission of providing Western North Carolina with excellence in a wide range of dance forms. Seasoned and novice audience members, from children to seniors, will be moved by the traditional timeless beauty of The Firebird’s love story and fairy tale about the eternal battle between good and evil. They will also thrill to the heart-pounding, foot-tapping rhythms and electrifying movement of the irresistible and unforgettable ANNA!

The Firebird is classical, but is not a white ballet – actually there is quite a lot of red and black on stage. The story is based on an ancient Russian folk tale about a mythical bird whose magic feathers provide protection against evil. Featured characters include a very bad sorceress, a handsome prince, a beautiful princess, eight enchanted princesses, a lot of horrible monsters, and the Firebird herself. Young and old alike will delight in the terribly scary monster dance, the triumph of good over evil, and the lyrical, romantic pas des deux between the prince and princess. The Firebird is a thoroughly cathartic and satisfying experience.

Dunn’s choreography attempts to stay true to the original, by Michael Fokine, but spices things up just a bit, and includes much original material, especially in the monster dance and the love scene. The costumes attempt to recreate the original designs by Bakst, for Serge Diaghilev’s Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. Principal roles are danced by Amy Kohler (Firebird), Lyle Laney (Prince Ivan), Allison Hertzberg (the Tsarevna), and Sarah McGinnis (Katschei – the sorceress), with a marvelous monster duet performed by Daniel McGinnis and Shannon Sollars.

For the second half of the evening, fasten your seat belts.

ANNA! Is your autobiography, whether you’ve lived it yet or not: birth, childhood, adolescence, leaving home, first love, first loss, hitting bottom, the tough climb, the choices, the triumph of self-hood, and ultimately the sense of cycle. We all know the script. Dunn has choreographed a full-length ballet to Stephanie’s Id’s incredible album, Spiral In, that captures the journey from infancy to adulthood, and beyond. Anna’s story is everyone’s story. Come rock out with her as she negotiates her life. It’s hot. It’s cool. It’s fast, breathtaking movement. Above all, it’s heart-stopping, live music.

Local dance lovers who have become fans, over the years, of Allison Hertzberg, Amy Kohler, Sarah McGinnis and Lyle Laney will not want to miss their star turns in this ballet. Amy Strickland, Angelina Waxman Faure, Megan Weaver and Cassie Wood round out the dancing cast.

Stephanie's Id is Asheville's "next best thing" according to Indie magazine. The guitarless band of four has quickly emerged as a musical giant, delivering massive pop/alternative hooks with a vibraphone, keyboards, drums, and an uninhibited female voice.

Singer Stephanie Morgan, a native of the Southwest United States, emotes liberally and onstage "jumps about...like Jim Morrison at a ballet class" (Ed Schiffler, The Asheville Disclaimer). Her vocal style has been compared to that of Bjork, Beth Gibbons of Portishead, and Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. Chuck, Matthew and Cameron, all from the southeast U.S., attended music schools and in all their idiosyncratic passion are apt to switch instruments. "S.Id," as their loyal Eastern U.S. coast fans refer to the band, communes with crowds, delivering modernist lyrics and a hefty live show. The sound is a highly effective intersection of four different musical paths. The musicians clocked years of stage time with symphonies, jazz combos, and other rock bands previous to forming Stephanie's Id in 2003. For more information, visit the web site at http://www.stephaniesid.com

Menage is Asheville’s finest female vocal trio. The combo has shot to the top of the regional music scene. Mary Ellen Bush, Sarah E. McDonald and Allison A. King create a unique and memorable blended sound. The group has played festivals, balls, listening rooms, colleges and private parties.

Ann Dunn has executed such prestigious choreographic commissions as Turandot for New York City Opera at Lincoln Center, Amahl and the Night Visitors for Gian Carlo Menotti’s officially sponsored touring company, and original work for national and international ballet and modern companies, symphonies, opera companies, and colleges.

Here’s what the critics have said: “Dunn is relentless in her pursuit of perfection . . . a ballet dancer gone mad . . . a woman of talent and vision.” - Thomas Rain Crowe. And “It is both true and insufficient to call Ann Dunn the best artist in the state; poet, painter, educator, choreographer, composer, she may well be the most various and impassioned artist of any sort . . . our one performing artist of truly national rank.” - David Brendan Hopes

Asheville Ballet members have trained and/or performed with New York City Ballet, Merce Cunningham, Martha Graham, Boitsov Ballet, The Ed Sullivan and Perry Como Shows, Tokyo Disneyland, Royal Carribean Cruise Line, Hartford Ballet, American Ballet, North Carolina School of the Arts, Virginia School of the Arts, and Florida State University. In addition to their local and touring work, members are currently on the faculties of Western Carolina University, University of North Carolina Asheville, and Fletcher School of Dance. They grace the stages of such popular venues as Tressa’s and The Orange Peel.

Asheville Ballet members participate in the annual season of four performances: Locally, they have also danced with The Asheville Symphony, The Asheville Lyric Opera, The Asheville Choral Society, and at The Asheville Art Museum. They have toured to Italy, Yale University, New York City, Keene State College, Georgia Technical Institute, arts council venues and public schools in the Southeast and Midwest, and have performed in such venues as The Dock Street Theater in Charleston, New York State Theater and Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Jacob’s Pillow, Dance Theater Workshop in New York, and on television and in films.

Here’s what the critics say: “great. . . splendid. . . pert, alert, lively and right on the money. . . spot on, with lovely pointe work and excellent partnering. . . grand pirouettes hit the target every time. . . swirled, bowed and lilted along. . . no drooping petals here! All too soon it was time for the finale.” - George Hubbard.