I'm not sure why I haven't reviewed the Arizona Ballet yet since my husband and I go to at least one performance a year. We are both fans of the ballet. I love watching ballet since it is so beautiful and emotional and artistic but at the same time you are always impressed with the athletic ability of the dancers. We used to have season tickets to the Houston Ballet when we lived there and also we have been to a few in New York (both NYC Ballet and American Ballet Co). So, I kind of feel like they set the bar pretty high and Ballet Arizona does not quite measure up. But they are still pretty good. I do agree with the other reviewer that their version of the Nutcracker could use some work.
Our most recent visit was to see Today's Master's last weekend and this is by far the best show I have seen by Ballet Arizona. Plus it was at the Orpheum so that was a bonus for me because I very much prefer that theater over Symphony Hall. The first piece, Carnival of the Animals was nothing special but I really enjoyed the other two. The costumes in Dreams of Rome were very cool looking and the dancing was very sleek and modern. But the best one was definitely Resonance, which was set to Pink Floyd music. How cool is that?!?!? That piece was truly amazing. The movements of the dancers was very original. I haven't seen a whole lot of modern dance but I can honestly say that I have never seen anything like it. The closest comparison I can come up with is Twyla Tharp who is a great modern ballet choreographer (and quite famous). But the surprising part is that Resonance was created by a regular dancer who is part of the Arizona Ballet company. His name is Nayon Iovino and I am sure he will go far in the dance world!