FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA CONTACT: February 12, 2016 Gary Tucker 206.441.2426 [email protected]

PACIFIC NORTHWEST BALLET PRESENTS

Featuring works by ALEJANDRO CERRUDO – PAUL GIBSON – JUSTIN PECK

March 18 – 27, 2016 Marion Oliver McCaw Hall 321 Mercer Street, Seattle Center Seattle, WA 98109

March 18 - 19 at 7:30 pm March 19 at 2:00 pm March 24 - 26 at 7:30 pm March 27 at 1:00 pm

SEATTLE, WA – For the fourth program of its 44th season, Pacific Northwest Ballet’s artistic director Peter Boal selects three contemporary ballet works:

PNB’s Paul Gibson wears several hats: an essential ballet master, scheduler, and teacher. In his spare time, he’s an impressive choreographer, too. Rush premiered in the Mercer Arts Arena in 2003 and through we don’t want to revisit the venue, the ballet deserves another look. Reworked for this program, Gibson’s electrifying Rush kicks off a trio of works featuring PNB premieres by two rising stars in the world of dance – Alejandro Cerrudo’s Little mortal jump and Justin Peck’s trailblazing Year of the Rabbit. Cerrudo is Resident Choreographer for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and Peck is New York City Ballet’s resident choreographer. This trio of contemporary works offers an energetic mix of speed, sculpture, and fresh musical offerings.

DIRECTOR’S CHOICE runs for seven performances only, March 18 through 27 at Seattle Center’s Marion Oliver McCaw Hall. Tickets start at $30. For more information, contact the PNB Box Office at 206.441.2424, in person at 301 Mercer Street, or online at PNB.org.

The line-up for DIRECTOR’S CHOICE will include:

Rush Music: Bohuslav Martinu (Double Concerto for Two String Orchestras, Piano, and Tympani, H.271, 1938) Choreography: Paul Gibson Costume Design: Mark Zappone Lighting Design: Lisa Pinkham Running Time: 24 minutes Premiere: November 7, 2002 (Mercer Arts Arena); re-staged March 18, 2016 (McCaw Hall); Pacific Northwest Ballet

Czech composer Bohuslav Martinu (1890-1959) wrote his Double Concerto for Two String Orchestras, Piano, and Tympani in troubled times, and the moods of anger and despair that pervade this piece reflect his concern for the future of his homeland. The work was finished on September 29, 1938, a day before Czechoslovakia was signed away to Nazi Germany as a result of the Munich Agreement. Choreographer Paul Gibson knew nothing of the concerto’s historical significance when he first heard a recording recommended to him by then PNB conductor Stewart Kershaw. Instead, he was swept away by the dark force and dense textures of the score, one that began almost immediately to inspire dance imagery. Rush was Gibson’s second ballet for PNB and his most ambitious offering to date. A work in three movements, it requires an ensemble of nine couples: a pair of principal dancers, four demi-soloists, and a corps de ballet of twelve. Plotless and free of any literal statements, this abstract neo-classical ballet explores a course that Martinu’s tense and turgid music has inspired. [Notes by Leland Windreich; edited by Doug Fullington, 2015.]

Little mortal jump (PNB Premiere) Music: Beirut (“A Call to Arms” and “La Banlieue”), Andrew Bird’s Bowl of Fire (“Beware”), Alexandre Desplat (“See How They Fall—Dans Les Champs De Ble” and “A Self-made Hero—Theme de Heroes”), Philip Glass (“Glassworks/Analog: Orange Mountain Music Archive: Closing”), Max Richter (“The Haunted Ocean 5” and “November”), Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan (“Fawn”) Choreography: Alejandro Cerrudo Staging: Pablo Piantino Scenic Design: Alejandro Cerrudo Costume Design: Branimira Ivanova Lighting Design: Michael Korsch Running Time: 26 minutes Premiere: March 15, 2012; Hubbard Street Dance Chicago

Little mortal jump, resident choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo’s tenth piece for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, is a bubbling blend of different styles and genres that distills into a fluid, cohesive whole. As a dance, it fuses the technicality of movement, the theatricality of the stage, and the dark humor inherent in relationships. As an experience, Cerrudo aims to transport his audience—to “make them forget what they did today, and what they will do tomorrow,” he says. From cubes that serve as frames and obstructions to diversely characterized couples to vastly contrasting music, Little mortal jump is layered with unexpected twists and turns. This work is a step in the evolution of Cerrudo’s choreographic style, of which he says, “I challenge myself to create more complex works and to do things that I haven’t done before.” [Notes courtesy of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago.]

Year of the Rabbit (PNB Premiere) Music: Sufjan Stevens (Enjoy Your Rabbit, 2002), orchestration by Michael P. Atkinson Choreography: Justin Peck Staging: Craig Hall and Janie Taylor Costume Design: Justin Peck Lighting Design: Brandon Stirling Baker Running Time: 30 minutes Premiere: October 5, 2012; New York City Ballet

Justin Peck’s acclaimed Year of the Rabbit is a collaboration with American singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens and is set to Stevens’ Enjoy Your Rabbit, an electronica album and song cycle based on the Chinese zodiac. The ballet features a new orchestration of the score by Michael Atkinson that was created specifically for the ballet. Year of the Rabbit is an elaboration of Peck’s Tales of a Chinese Zodiac, which was created in 2010 for the New York Choreographic Institute. [Notes courtesy of New York City Ballet.]

TICKET INFORMATION & DISCOUNT OFFERS

Tickets ($30-$187) may be purchased through the PNB Box Office:  Phone - 206.441.2424 (Mon.-Fri. 10am–6pm; Sat. 10am–5pm)  In Person - 301 Mercer Street, Seattle (Mon.-Fri. 10am–6pm; Sat. 10am–5pm)  Online - PNB.org (24/7) Subject to availability, tickets are also available 90 minutes prior to show times at McCaw Hall.

GROUP SALES Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more. For group tickets, please call Group Sales Manager Julie Jamieson at 206.441.2416, email [email protected] or use PNB’s online contact form at PNB.org/Season/GroupTickets.

GET THE POINTE The Pointe is PNB’s exclusive mailing list for ballet fans between the ages of 20 and 40. Members of The Pointe receive information about special events and flash sales just for them. Born between 1976 and 1996? Visit PNB.org and click on “Offers” for more information and to get The Pointe.

TEENTIX PNB is a proud participant of TeenTix. Founded by Seattle Center, TeenTix’s members (13 to 19 years old) can purchase tickets to PNB and other music, dance, theater and arts events for only $5. To join TeenTix or view a list of participating organizations, visit teentix.org.

STUDENT AND SENIOR RUSH TICKETS Subject to availability, half-price rush tickets for students and senior citizens (65+) may be purchased in-person with ID, from 90 minutes prior to show time at the McCaw Hall box office.

SPECIAL EVENTS

FRIDAY PREVIEW Friday, March 11, 6:00 pm The Phelps Center, 301 Mercer St., Seattle PNB’s popular Friday Previews are hour-long studio rehearsals hosted by Artistic Director Peter Boal and PNB artistic staff, featuring Company dancers rehearsing excerpts from upcoming ballets. Tickets are $12. (Note: These events usually sell out in advance.) Friday Previews are sponsored by U.S. Bank.

BALLET PREVIEW — FREE Tuesday, March 15, 12:00 noon Microsoft Auditorium, Central Seattle Public Library, 1000 Fourth Avenue, Seattle Join PNB for a FREE lunch-hour preview lecture at the Central Seattle Public Library. Audience Education Manager Doug Fullington will offer insights about DIRECTOR’S CHOICE, complete with video excerpts. FREE of charge.

LECTURE SERIES & DRESS REHEARSAL Thursday, March 17 Lecture 6:00 pm, Nesholm Family Lecture Hall at McCaw Hall Dress Rehearsal 7:00 pm, McCaw Hall Join Artistic Director Peter Boal in conversation with Year of the Rabbit stagers Craig Hall and Janie Taylor during the hour preceding the dress rehearsal, discussing the creative process involved in the development of a new ballet. Attend the lecture only or stay for the rehearsal. Tickets are $12 for the lecture, or $30 for the lecture and dress rehearsal. Tickets may be purchased through the PNB Box Office.

PRE-PERFORMANCE LECTURES Nesholm Family Lecture Hall at McCaw Hall Join Audience Education Manager Doug Fullington for a 30-minute introduction to each performance, including discussions of choreography, music, history, design and the process of bringing ballet to the stage. One hour before performances. FREE for ticketholders.

POST-PERFORMANCE Q&A Nesholm Family Lecture Hall at McCaw Hall Skip the post-show traffic and enjoy a Q&A with Artistic Director Peter Boal and PNB dancers, immediately following each performance. FREE for ticketholders.

YOUNG PATRONS CIRCLE NIGHT Friday, March 25 Join members of PNB’s Young Patrons Circle (YPC) in an exclusive lounge for complimentary wine and coffee before the show and at intermission. YPC is PNB’s social and educational group for ballet patrons ages 21 through 39. YPC members save up to 40% off their tickets. For more information, visit PNB.org and search for “YPC.”

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Paul Gibson was named assistant ballet master immediately upon retirement from PNB in June 2004. He joined the Company in 1994 as a soloist and was promoted to the rank of principal in 1996. His choreographic work includes ballets for PNB and PNB School's Professional Division, as well as works for San Francisco Ballet School, San Francisco Ballet Choreographic Workshop, and Allegheny Ballet Company. Mr. Gibson has also been a participant in the New York Choreographic Institute. Originally from Altoona, Pennsylvania, Mr. Gibson began ballet training at Allegheny Ballet Academy and later went to summer programs at the School of American Ballet. He won a scholarship at San Francisco Ballet School and joined that company in 1988, where he rose to the rank of soloist. Mr. Gibson assists the artistic director in teaching, rehearsing, and scheduling the Company and rehearsing PNB School students in their roles for Company productions.

Alejandro Cerrudo was born in Madrid, Spain and trained at the Real Conservatorio Profesional de Danza de Madrid. His professional career began in 1998 and includes work with Victor Ullate Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet and Nederlands Dans Theater 2. Cerrudo joined Hubbard Street Dance Chicago in 2005, was named Choreographic Fellow in 2008, and became the company’s first Resident Choreographer in 2009. Thirteen works choreographed to date for Hubbard Street include collaborations with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Nederlands Dans Theater. These pieces and additional commissions are in repertory at companies around the U.S. as well as in Australia, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands; touring engagements have brought his work still further abroad, to audiences in Algeria, Canada, Morocco and Spain. In March 2012, Pacific Northwest Ballet invited Cerrudo to choreograph his first work for the company, Memory Glow, upon receiving the Joyce Theater Foundation’s second Rudolf Nureyev Prize for New Dance. Additional honors include an award from the Boomerang Fund for Artists (2011), and a Prince Prize for Commissioning Original Work from the Prince Charitable Trusts (2012) for his acclaimed, first evening-length work, One Thousand Pieces. Cerrudo is one of four choreographers invited by New York City Ballet principal Wendy Whelan to create and perform original duets for “Restless Creature,” and he was recently announced the 2014 USA Donnelley Fellow by United States Artists.

Justin Peck has already been hailed as an important new voice in 21st-century choreography. He is currently a soloist and the resident choreographer of New York City Ballet. Mr. Peck, originally from San Diego, California, moved to New York at the age of 15 to attend the School of American Ballet. In 2006, he was invited by ballet master-in-chief Peter Martins to become a member of New York City Ballet. Mr. Peck had his choreographic debut in 2009 and has been fervently creating since then. He has been commissioned by New York City Ballet, the New York Choreographic Institute, the School of American Ballet, Miami City Ballet, the New World Symphony, L.A. Dance Project, New York City Center’s Fall for Dance Festival, the Nantucket Atheneum Dance Festival, The Guggenheim Museum, and more. He has collaborated with the likes of Sufjan Stevens, Shepard Fairey, Bryce Dessner, Prabal Gurung, Sterling Ruby, Mary Katrantzou, and Karl Jensen. In 2014, Mr. Peck was appointed Resident Choreographer of New York City Ballet, making him the second choreographer in the history of the institution to hold this position. Debonair, created in 2014, was Mr. Peck’s first work for Pacific Northwest Ballet.

# # #

DIRECTOR’S CHOICE is made possible by presenting sponsor National Foundation for the Arts and major sponsors Glenn Kawasaki, Nesholm Family Foundation, and U.S. Bank. Media sponsor is KUOW 94.9 fm. The PNB premiere of Alejandro Cerrudo’s Little mortal jump is generously underwritten by Jeffrey & Susan Brotman. Principal support for the PNB premiere of Justin Peck’s Year of the Rabbit is provided by Marcella McCaffray and Bob Benson, with additional support from Gilla Kaplan. The return of Paul Gibson’s Rush at PNB is generously underwritten by Glenn Kawasaki. Pacific Northwest Ballet’s 2015-2016 season is proudly sponsored by ArtsFund and Microsoft.

Publicity Contact Gary Tucker, Media Relations Manager 206.441.2426 / [email protected] / PNB.org/press Schedule and programming subject to change. For further information, please visit PNB.org.

PACIFIC NORTHWEST BALLET 301 Mercer Street Seattle, WA 98109 206.441.2424 PNB.org