Vibrant, luscious costumes and foot-stomping rhythms explode onto the Auditorium Theatre stage with the return of Amalia Hernandez’s joyful, energetic company. Ballet Folklorico has been a major cultural ambassador for sixty years, bringing folk music from regions across Mexico to life through traditional, ritual and contemporary dance. Ms. Hernandez founded the ballet to collect and preserve indigenous Mexican dances and today the company, under the direction of her grandson Salvador Lopez, has dozens of folk dances in their repertory, adapted for the stage. Caballeros leap and pound out driving rhythms to the horns of on-stage mariachi; the mystery and ceremony of ancient Mayan culture is felt in low, thunderous drums and strong, angular movement vocabulary. The Ballet creates an onstage party so infectious, it’s impossible to keep from clapping along when brightly colored skirts twirl eye-high. (Sharon Hoyer)
At the Auditorium Theatre, 50 East Congress, (800)982-2787. Saturday, October 6 at 7:30pm and Sunday, October 7 at 3pm. $30-$74.
Encouragement and Drive: A Preview of Dance for Life at the Auditorium Theatre “Dance for Life” is an annual concert that raises money for The Dancers’ Fund, which provides health care assistance for dancers and people who work in the dance field. But it also happens to be a beloved and joyful celebration of Chicago’s rich and abundant dance scene.
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.”
