OMAHA — Sept. 24, 2019 — American Midwest Ballet (AMB) leaps into its tenth anniversary season with a celebration of old and new — several back-by-popular demand favorites, along with an exciting new work.
Habaneras, the Music of Cuba
The company’s award-winning annual mixed repertory production, Momentum, kicks off the ballet season with the Omaha premiere of the sultry, colorful Habaneras, the Music of Cuba — an ode to the 1950s-era Big Band sounds of Cuba, the native home of choreographer Frank Chaves.
“Habaneras is a vibrant piece that is a tribute to my native Cuba and celebrates the music that has been a part of my life since I was a child,” said Chaves. “This piece speaks to my love of the arts and to the many joys and fulfillment that music can bring to the soul.”
Also back are two of AMB’s most-requested favorites: In the Style of Bob Fosse and Party Animals.
In The Style of Bob Fosse
A tribute to the legendary choreographer, In the Style of Bob Fosse is a work personally created for AMB by Broadway superstar Ann Reinking, Fosse’s muse and protégée.
“I had always wanted a Fosse-inspired work in our repertory, but in order to do it justice, it had to be created by someone who truly understood and embodied the technique and spirit of Bob Fosse’s vision and style,” said artistic director, Erika Overturff.
“Who better than Ann Reinking to bring Fosse to life again through AMB’s own dancers? We are over the moon to collaborate with a celebrated artist of her caliber,” said Overturff.
“It is a dream come true for our dancers.”
Party Animals
Rounding out a dynamic evening of dance is Party Animals, which made its world premiere in 2014.
“Since this entire season is a celebration of our tenth anniversary, a party was definitely in order,” says Overturff of her original work.
Party Animals showcases AMB’s professional dancers as playful lions, birds, cheetahs and other animals in clever costumes designed by Deborah Overturff.
Overturff’s funny, flirty, fantasy work also features glamorous flamingos, a mob of meerkats, darling baby elephants, and exuberant zebras, as well as a pas de deux between a shy hippo and a dapper but sneaky crocodile.
MOMENTUM opens the company’s 10th anniversary season Oct. 11 at Joslyn Art Museum’s Witherspoon Concert Hall, with a second performance Oct. 13 at Arts Center at IWCC.
This performance has concluded.