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SALT LAKE CITY -- Ballet West is performing in the center of the dance world -- New York City. The performance has drawn so much attention, one member of the company is on the cover of 'Dance' magazine.
Even without the costumes, you can imagine a stylized, sophisticated 1920s soiree where the party-goers are clearly into themselves. Ballet West is one of the few companies in the country that performs "Les Biches" or "The Little Darlings."
With the 100th anniversary of Ballet Russe - New York City's Ballet Center contacted Adam Sklute with an invitation.
"So exciting, this is the first time Ballet West has been invited back to New York since 1981. So it's a wonderful honor," Sklute said. "All of this attention also includes the cover of Dance magazine -- for a dancer, a dream come true." Principal Dancer, Kate Crews, struck her best party hostess pose for the photo shoot.
"They have a lot of the big stars on there over and over again. And so for Ballet West it was a huge accomplishment, and for me personally it was a huge accomplishment," she said.
Accolades aside, this piece is extremely demanding and the dancers know critics and critical audiences await them.
"It's very important that people understand the strength and excitement of Ballet West. And most people, they hear of Salt Lake City, they may not think of ballet. But we're super excited to be there and represent the company," Crews said.
Sklute came from one of the country's top dance companies -- the Joffrey Ballet. His first promise to Ballet West was raising its profile on the national scene.
"Ballet West is a beautiful company and it deserves to be seen around the world," he said. While part of the company performs in New York City, others will travel to the Laguna Beach Dance Festival. It's all about raising the "barre."
If you are not able to travel to New York or California, Ballet West opens its season at the Capitol Theatre on October 30th with "The Dream".
E-mail: cmikita@ksl.com
