San Francisco Ballet visits Scandinavia after 12 years' absence

San Francisco Ballet the oldest professional ballet company in America is coming to the Tiivoli Concert Hall August 21-27, 2010. Over seven performances, the Company will present two mixed-repertory programs featuring works by SF Ballet Artistic Director & Principal Choreographer Helgi Tomasson, SF Ballet Choreographer in Residence Yuri Possokhov, George Balanchine, and Christopher Wheeldon, among others.

"We are honored to return to Copenhagen's renowned Tivoli Concert Hall for the first time in over a decade," remarked San Francisco Ballet Artistic Director & Principal Choreographer Helgi Tomasson. "Tivoli has a rich history of presenting world-class dance, and it is also a very special place for me personally, since I began my professional career there as a fifteen-year-old. I am delighted to present Danish audiences with two diverse programs that showcase the artistry of the Company."

Tour to Copenhagen San Francisco Ballet will present three European premieres on two mixed-repertory programs of four works each at the Tivoli Concert Hall in Copenhagen. Program A, which will be performed on August 21 evening, 22 matinee and evening, and 27 evening, features Tomasson's Prism and Chaconne for Piano and Two Dancers, Wheeldon's Within the Golden Hour, and Jorma Elo's Double Evil. Program B includes Possokhov's Fusion, Balanchine's Stravinsky Violin Concerto, Tomasson's Concerto Grosso, and Mark Morris' Sandpaper Ballet and will be presented in three evening performances on August 24, 25 and 26.

San Francisco Ballet As America's oldest professional ballet company and one of the three largest ballet companies in the United States, San Francisco Ballet has enjoyed a long and rich tradition of artistic "firsts" since its founding in 1933. It performed the first American productions of Swan Lake and Nutcracker, as well as the first production of Coppélia choreographed by an American choreographer. Guided in its early years by American dance pioneers and brothers Lew, Willam, and Harold Christensen, San Francisco Ballet currently presents more than 100 performances a year locally, nationally, and abroad. Under the direction of Helgi Tomasson for 25 years, the Company has achieved an international reputation as one of the preeminent ballet companies in the world. In 2005, San Francisco Ballet won the prestigious Laurence Olivier Award, its first, in the category of "Outstanding Achievement in Dance," for its 2004 London tour. In 2006, San Francisco Ballet was the first non-European company elected "Company of the Year" in Dance Europe magazine's annual readers' poll. In 2008, San Francisco Ballet celebrated its 75th anniversary with a host of initiatives that included a New Works Festival of 10 world premieres by 10 renowned choreographers. 2010 marks the 25th anniversary of SF Ballet Artistic Director & Principal Choreographer Helgi Tomasson's tenure with the Company.

Tickets: Tivoli Box Office, tel. +45 3315 1012

Info: www.tivoligardens.com - www.sfballet.com

San Francisco Ballet Tivoli 2010 Repertory

Program A

PRISM
Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven
Choreographer: Helgi Tomasson
World Premiere: May 3, 2000 - New York City Ballet, Diamond Project, New York State Theater; New York, New York San Francisco Ballet Premiere: - War Memorial Opera House; San Francisco, California

WITHIN THE GOLDEN HOUR ©
Composers: Ezio Bosso, Antonio Vivaldi
Choreographer: Christopher Wheeldon
World Premiere: April 22, 2008 - San Francisco Ballet, War Memorial Opera House; San Francisco, California

DOUBLE EVIL
Composers: Philip Glass, Vladimir Martinov
Choreographer: Jorma Elo
World Premiere: April 24, 2008 - San Francisco Ballet, War Memorial Opera House; San Francisco, California

Program B

FUSION
Composers: Graham Fitkin, Rahul Dev Burman
Choreographer: Yuri Possokhov
World Premiere: April 22, 2008 - San Francisco Ballet, War Memorial Opera House; San Francisco, California

STRAVINSKY VIOLIN CONCERTO
Composers: Igor Stravinsky
Choreographer: George Balanchine
World Premiere: June 18, 1972 - New York City Ballet, Stravinsky Festival, New York State Theater; New York, New York San Francisco Ballet Premiere: March 28, 1995 - War Memorial Opera House; San Francisco, California

CONCERTO GROSSO
Composers: Francesco Geminiani, after Arcangelo Corelli
Choreographer: Helgi Tomasson
World Premiere: January 29, 2003 - San Francisco Ballet, War Memorial Opera House; San Francisco, California

CHACONNE FOR PIANO AND TWO DANCERS
Composers: George Frideric Handel
Choreographer: Helgi Tomasson
World Premiere: January 25, 1999 - San Francisco Ballet, War Memorial Opera House; San Francisco, California

SANDPAPER BALLET
Composers: Leroy Anderson
Choreographer: Mark Morris
World Premiere: April 27, 1999 - San Francisco Ballet, War Memorial Opera House; San Francisco, California

Calendar

Feb 2012