ABT stars descend onto the Irvine Barclay Stage in Festival Ballet Theater’s Production of
‘The Nutcracker’ December 11 - 24

By Lydia E. Ringwald

 

Paloma Herrera, who stars in the Festival Ballet 'Nutcracker' at Irvine Barclay Theater


American Ballet Theater ballet stars Irina Dvorovenko and Paloma Herrera descend onto the Irvine Barclay Theater stage for the holiday season’s performances of Festival Ballet Theater production of ‘The Nutcracker’ December 11- 24.

On December 11,12 and 13 world renown ABT Principal Irina Dvorovenko partners with principal dancer Maxim Beloserkovsky in the lead roles in the classic Tchaikovsky ballet favorite.   Irina Dvorovenko, acclaimed for her stunning series of fouette turns in the Festival Ballet production of ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ in the spring earlier this year, will guest star as The Sugar Plum Fairy in the Festival Ballet Theater winter production of ‘The Nutcracker.’

Maxim Beloserkovsky, a lead performer the some of the most challenging male roles in ballet history, will partner with Irina in four performances, December 11 at 7 pm, December 12 at 2 pm and 7pm and December 13 at 1 pm. The Friday, December 11 performance is already completely sold out, so it is wise to secure tickets immediately for the remaining performances.

The following weekend, December 19 and 20, ABT stars Paloma Herrera and Gennadi Saveliev perform the lead roles in the Festival Ballet 'Nutcracker' production.

Paloma Herrera’s stellar career as XIV Varna International Ballet Competition winner lead her to train at the School of American Ballet and ultimately to the position of soloist and Principal Dancer for American Ballet Theater, where she performed lead roles in classics the magnitude of 'Romeo and Juliet,' 'La Bayadere,' 'Swan Lake,' and 'Le Corsaire.'

Paloma partners with Gennadi Savelieve, a former principal of the Bolshoi ballet Grigorovich Company before joining ABT. Performance of the stunning Paloma Herrera and Gennadi Savelieve are schedule for December 19 at 2 pm and 7 pm and December 20 at 1pm and 6 pm.

Festival Ballet Theater Director Salwa Rizkalla includes the traditional ‘Nutcracker’ holiday classic in her company’s repertoire of quarterly performances and schedules the traditional family favorite each year for the holiday season. The company’s opulent sets and costumes, charming choreographies, Southland Ballet Academy cast and featured ballet stars have entertained and edified Southern California audiences over the years.

Festival Ballet Theater also offers a one-hour educational outreach performance “Children’s Invitation to the Ballet” especially designed to introduce elementary and middle school students to the beauty of classical ballet and music. The narrated rendition of ‘The Nutcracker’ is offered at the Irvine Barclay Theater on Thursday, December 10 at 9:30 am and 11:30 am.

For tickets and further information, visit www.festivalballet.org or call the Irvine Barclay Theater at (949) 854-4646.