Ballet Manila successfully ends 23rd season with Deux

Ballet Manila closed its 23rd season in spectacular fashion as it recently premiered its newest double header Deux, which gracefully combined classical with contemporary ballet to the tunes of Chopin and The Beatles, at the Aliw Theater, CCP Complex.

Center: Ballet Manila CEO and artistic director Lisa Macuja and Martin Lawrance with the Ballet Manila dancers at the successful 23rd season finale, DEUX.

The show opened with classical vignettes featuring “Les Sylphides” where a lone danseur was seen being surrounded by his muses – white-clad sylphs or air spirits, dancing in the moonlight. While it is non-narrative, its lingering music by Frederic Chopin and lyrical choreography by Michael Fokine evoke the illusion of ethereal weightlessness which characterized the romantic era of ballet where technique is the focal point, especially the intricate pointe work of ballerinas.

The first chapter of the show also showed other classical vignettes including Pas De Action and Diane et Acteon.

The second chapter of the show featured a thrilling contemporary ballet entitled The Winding Road set to the tune of The Beatles. Choreographed by Martin Lawrance, The Winding Road brought ballet closer to the young and old with Beatles hits such as I Saw Her Standing There, Here, There and Everywhere, Something, The Long and Winding Road, She Loves You, and many more!

“Our 23rd performance season has been a very wonderful journey—kicking off with electrifying productions of Tour de Force and now we closed with the perfect double header, Deux,” said Ballet Manila CEO and artistic director Lisa Macuja-Elizalde. “We are very thankful for everyone’s continuous support for Ballet Manila and we are very thrilled to see everyone again on our 24th performance season.”

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Ballet Manila is The Philippines’ Premiere Classical Dance Company. Under the leadership of Lisa Macuja-Elizalde, Ballet Manila has brought the magic of classical ballet to the farthest-flung regions of the country, as well as the important ballet capitals of the world. Ballet Manila also continuously innovates to provide its audience, clients, and business partners with a myriad of shows and performance options.