Stanton Welch framed his new Nutcracker as a coming-of-age story, with a young Clara at the center of his dazzling holiday ballet, now entering its second year.
On a sunny May afternoon, I found myself spellbound, watching Houston Ballet principals Yuriko Kajiya and Connor Walsh rehearse the very first meeting between Giselle and Albrecht.
Houston Ballet's From Houston to the World, Sept. 18-28, offers three ballets created right here in the Bayou City, but there's much more to the program than that fact.
Houston Ballet celebrated its leader's tenth year at the helm by performing three of his works in one evening, a perfect Stanton Welch wonderland and a great way to examine this choreographer's gifts to ballet.
In celebration of Shakespeare's 450th birthday, Houston Ballet has anchored their new season with three ballets based on Shakespeare's timeless tales, including the company premiere of John Neumeier's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Stanton Welch's world premiere of Romeo and Juliet and John Cranko's The Taming of the Shrew.
A magic lantern, a flying carpet, an evil monster, love at first sight and a blend of trickery and triumph sounds like all the right ingredients for a juicy story ballet.
Every year, I resist the list, and then cave with some kind of listicle of fave performances. Here are some moments that stood out for me on Houston's dance and theater stages. Oh, and one film performance, because I couldn't resist.