Will the recent release of Darren Aronofsky’s menacing ballet thriller slash horror film prompt audiences to, um, flock to see the ballet that served as the film’s narrative framework? Hard to say, but the State Ballet Theatre of Russia is certainly timely taking this one on the road. It’s the St. Petersburg-based company’s second time in Chicago (the last was their 2006 production of Cinderella), performing Russian ballet in the time-honored tradition. Meaning you won’t see a drop of blood or glimpse the guts of art-making so literally imagined in “Black Swan,” but you will see the gleaming product of a quest for perfection: ranks of weightless ballerinas slicing through footwork with surgeon-like precision, leg extensions high enough to change a light bulb and a cast of sixty-five moving with one mind. (Sharon Hoyer)
At the Auditorium Theatre, 50 East Congress (800)982-2787, February 4 at 7:30pm and February 5 at 2pm and 8pm. $30-$87.
Fugue State: A Review of Life After at the Goodman Theatre The brilliance of this musical about the family and circle of a self-help guru manifests from so many directions that the show sweeps one magically, whimsically, sometimes tragically, in a wonder-ride that seems to fit all of life on stage.
Complementary Opposites: A Preview of "Serenade" and "Of Mice and Men" by the Joffrey Ballet “Both [ballets] are trying to deal with a particular time: One by healing with the beauty of dance, the other by trying to create empathy for beaten-down humanity. Right now, we’re facing some of the same issues, such as huge migrations from the workplace. Steinbeck shone a light on his time, and I hope we’re able to do the same.”
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