February 28, 2015 at Hult Center for the Performing Arts, City of Eugene in Eugene, OR.
7:30 PM
Soreng Theater
Presented by Ballet Fantastique
In a bold contemporary ballet premiere, Ballet Fantastique chronicles the nostoi (epic journey homeward) of a great warrior hero. Homer’s ancient poem from 800 BC is literature’s grandest tale of moral endurance through adventure, intrigue and danger. Odysseus, King of Ithaca, is imprisoned on the island of the goddess Calypso following his victory in the Trojan War. Quick, clever, and calculating, Odysseus relies on his wit and wiliness as he encounters forces both natural and divine: his bitter enemy Poseidon, the powerful witch-goddess Circe, and the fearsome Cyclops. Throughout Odysseus’ ten-year quest to return to Ithaca, the goddess Athena is his protectress and the brave and faithful Queen Penelope is his beacon.
In The Odyssey: The Ballet, Ballet Fantastique choreographer-producers Donna Marisa and Hannah Bontrager forge hypnotic, fierce, and hauntingly beautiful new choreographic territory, celebrating the dramatic prowess of Ballet Fantastique’s artists in translating Homer’s spectacular characters and fantastic story through dance.
Don’t miss the energy and poetry of Homer’s great epic tale, captured in Ballet Fantastique’s trademark contemporary ballet theater idiom—a new Odyssey to treasure for its sheer lyrical, artistic splendor.
Photo by Stephanie Urso.
Address: 1 Eugene Ctr, Eugene