After an absence of nearly 20 years, Miami City Ballet returned to Jacob’s Pillow in 2017 under the direction of former New York City Ballet principal Lourdes Lopez. The company’s previous four Pillow appearances in the 1980s and 90s were all led by the company’s founding artistic director, Edward Villella. Universally admired as one of the world’s preeminent interpreters of George Balanchine’s choreography, the company has presented many Balanchine works at the Pillow, including Square Dance. Miami City Ballet is known today for nurturing new choreographic voices, creating innovative collaborations, and opening new avenues of inclusivity within classical ballet. The company’s 2017 Pillow program featured Christopher Wheeldon’s Polyphonia, while the work seen here was presented only once as part of the Season Opening Gala. It was created for the London revival of Carousel in 1992, and MacMillan’s choreography remained a part of the production when it moved to Broadway the following year.
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