Royal Winnipeg Ballet

Don't get ghosted 👻 LAST CALL to save 20% on the terrifyingly fun Giselle and Jekyll & Hyde with our Spooky Bundle. Offer expires at midnight tomorrow. See https://buy.rwb.org/packages/flex/2079

📷 Colorado Ballet artist Jonnathan Ramirez in Jekyll & Hyde, photo by Andrew Fassbender, shared with permission

💙 Giselle Production Supporter Richardson Foundation
💙 Jekyll & Hyde Presenting Sponsor BMO Financial Group
❤️ Arts Partner Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
💛 Live Music Benefactor The Asper Foundation

Don't be fooled by ticket reselling sites. To ensure the validity and price of your tickets, always buy directly from the RWB (or tour presenter for performances outside of Winnipeg). Help us help you -- check for our name in the URL before you click to purchase >> buy.rwb.org

Prepare to be captivated! 🎭 Join us March 22 as we unveil the magic of a new fundraising event with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s first annual Masquerade Ball: Celebrating 85 Years of Dance. Be the first to experience an unforgettable night steeped in mystery and enchantment at Alloway Hall in the Manitoba Museum and help us unmask possibilities. Book your seat today at rwb.org/gala

Don't miss these SPOOKtacular savings! Like the moon, your chance to save 20% on tickets to the hauntingly beautiful Giselle and horrifying Canadian premiere of Jekyll & Hyde while unlocking subscriber benefits is beginning to wane. This offer will ghost at the strike of midnight on Halloween. Shop now >> https://buy.rwb.org/packages/flex/2079

📷 RWB Company in Giselle 2011 courtesy of the RWB Archives / Colorado Ballet artists Jeremy Studinski and Asuka Sasaki in Jekyll & Hyde, photo by Andrew Fassbender and shared with permission of Colorado Ballet

🥀 CASTING ANNOUNCEMENT 💔

A new generation of artists step into the iconic roles at the tortured heart of Giselle, with all but one performing them for the first time!

✨ NOVEMBER 7 & 9
Alanna McAdie as Giselle
Peter Lancksweerdt as Albrecht
Stephan Azulay as Hilarion
Jaimi Deleau as Myrtha

💖 NOVEMBER 8 (EVE) & 10
Elizabeth Lamont as Giselle
Michel Lavoie as Albrecht
Marco Lo Presti as Hilarion
Maggie Weatherdon as Myrtha

👻 NOVEMBER 8 COMMUNITY MATINEE
Kyra Soo as Giselle
Logan Savard as Giselle
Joshua Hidson as Hilarion
Jaimi Deleau as Myrtha

*All casting subject to change

🎟️ tickets at https://www.rwb.org/whats-on/show/giselle

📷 headshots by Ian McCausland Photography

“No matter what one’s reason for going to the ballet - dance, expression, theatre, music, history - it’s in the heart and soul of every minute of this production,” claims a 1998 review in the Winnipeg Free Press

That statement is as true today as it was then. Generations of ballet fans have adored Giselle and now, it is your turn!

📅 Join us Nov 7-10 at the Centennial Concert Hall
🎟️ Tickets start at $39 at https://www.rwb.org/whats-on/show/giselle
👻 OR bundle with Jekyll & Hyde through Oct 31 to save 20% with our "Spooky Bundle"

📷 Former RWB dancers Liang Xing (2014-17) and Sophia Lee (2011-20) with RWB Company and Aspirants in Giselle 2015, by Réjean Brandt

💙 Production Supporter Richardson Foundation
❤️ Arts Partner Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
💛 Live Music Benefactor The Asper Foundation

Frighteningly good deal: save 20% with our Spooky Bundle! 😱

Now through midnight on Halloween, save 20% on two haunting ballets. Experience vengeful spirits in the returning classic Giselle and twisted minds in the Canadian premiere of Val Caniparoli's Jekyll & Hyde. Plus you'll unlock the full suite of subscriber perks including free exchanges, discounted parking, and 40% off Nutcracker tickets. Secure your spook at https://buy.rwb.org/packages/flex/2079

Offer valid in sections A-D on adult tickets only. Discount can be redeemed up to four times per customer. Not valid of children or teen tickets and cannot be applied retroactively. Offer expires 11:59PM on October 31.

📷 Jonnathan Ramirez and Artists of Colorado Ballet in Jekyll & Hyde, photo by Amanda Tipton
💙 Giselle Production Supporter The Richardson Foundation
❤️ Arts Partner Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
💛 Live Music Benefactor The Asper Foundation

Limited seats left for Dinner & Ballet 🍴

Don’t miss this opportunity to connect with the arts community while enjoying a three-course dinner by Bergmann's On Lombard on the Piano Nobile of the Centennial Concert Hall prior to the Nov 9 performance of Giselle.

😋 Choice of entrée between a honey-brined chicken breast with berry-infused red wine sauce or a hummus crusted cauliflower “steak”

🎟 Reservations can be added on to your ticket purchase or added separately at https://buy.rwb.org/13535/13537 if you already have a ticket to that evening’s show.

📷 (1) courtesy of Bergmann’s on Lombard, not necessarily reflective of this dinner’s menu / (2) former RWB principal dancer Jo-Ann Sundermeier in Giselle 2015 by Stanislav Belyaevsky

Last week we were thrilled to attend the Annual General Meeting for Things. The volunteer organization supporting the RWB celebrated their 75th anniversary, received a Community Service Award by the mayor, and presented the RWB with a cheque for $30,000. Bravo to all who continue to devote their time and energy to this great cause. ❤️

Photos by Ben Wasylyshen

What a week working with and learning from as we prepare Giselle. Can’t wait to show you the results on stage Nov 7-10.

The RWB will be closed on Thanksgiving Monday (October 14) so our artists, staff, and students can spend time with their loved ones. We hope you all have a joyous and warm weekend and look forward to reconnecting when we re-open on Tuesday. 🧡

We offer plenty of ways to enhance your ballet-going experience. Join us for a post-show tour backstage Nov 8 or 9, meet the dancers on the Piano Nobile after the final show Nov 10, or reserve a spot at our exclusive catered Dinner & Ballet before the performance on Nov 9. All of these opportunities are available to add to your ticket when purchasing online. Contact our Box Office if you already have tickets and want to add one of these experiences. See you at the ballet!

🎟️ secure your spot at buy.rwb.org

📷 (1) Backstage tour and (2) meet the dancers during Snow White, Fall 2023, by RWB Marketing Team
🍴 Dinner & Ballet catered by Bergmann's On Lombard

Join us in welcoming to the studio this week, bringing incredible artistry and an invaluable perspective to our staging of Giselle. ❤️

📷 Greta Hodgkinson O.Ont in Giselle with by Aleksandar Antonijevic

This evening, Mayor Scott Gillingham hosts the Mayor's Ball Winnipeg "highlighting the incredible talent and creativity of our performing arts community" and raising funds to support the RWB, Manitoba Opera, Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre and the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. We are honoured to have Alanna McAdie and Peter Lancksweerdt perform "Summer" choreographed by Stephan Azulay to honour the philanthropic spirit of the late Kathleen Richardson.

📷 Alanna and Peter performing Summer at Ballet in the Park 2024, by Michelle Blais

"There are roles in classical ballet that ask only that a poet’s heart beat in an athlete’s body. Giselle in the twilight world of the wilis... is one of them."

See poetry in motion when Giselle returns to the Winnipeg stage Nov 7-10 at Centennial Concert Hall accompanied by Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. Tickets start at $39 only at rwb.org

📷 RWB Company in Giselle 2011 courtesy of the RWB Archives
💙 Production Supporter The Richardson Foundation
❤️ Arts Partner Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
💛 Live Music Benefactor The Asper Foundation
✨ CREATIVE TEAM:
Choreography: Peter Wright, after Jules Perrot, Jean Coralli and Marius Petipa
Scenery & Costume Design: Peter Farmer
Lighting Design: Nicholas Cernovitch
Music: Adolphe Adam

Today is our Annual General Meeting looking back on all that we accomplished in our 2023/24 season and looking forward at how we plan to grow in the year to come.

📷 Park Long (2023) by David Cooper, C.M.

Today is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on which we commemorate the tragic and painful history of residential schools and honour the impacted families.

In April, we debuted T’əl: The Wild Man of the Woods, choreographed by Cameron sinkʷə Fraser-Monroe based on a story from the Tla’amin First Nation. On this day of reflection, that ballet's fictional storyline of children reunited with their loved ones has a different meaning as we remember the lost children in our nation's history and honour the survivors.

📷 Elizabeth Lamont, Logan Savard and RWB Company in T’əl: The Wild Man of the Woods (2024), by Daniel Crump

Introducing "RWB Vintage," a merchandise collection that pays tribute to our rich history and artistic legacy. Orders will be available for pickup starting November 7 at either the RWB building in downtown Winnipeg or at the Centennial Concert Hall for Giselle audiences. Pre-order now at https://www.rwbstore.org/vintage-collection

We are proud to partner with the Health Sciences Centre Foundation on their 2024 HSC Millionaire Lottery. Their grand prize winner will live like a millionaire with their choice of grand prize, including homes in Winnipeg or Vancouver Island or $1,250,000 cash! Plus there are plenty of local prizes to be won, whether you're looking for travel, entertainment, dining or more... including subscriptions for the RWB's 24/25 season. Swipe through for a sample of other prize partners.

Ticket prices start as low as $20 per ticket for their 50/50 and $100 per ticket for their grand prize tickets. Learn more at HSCMillionaire.com

Ahead of our NYC debut at Fall for Dance this week, we stopped by Bard College's Fisher Center for the Performing Arts. šɛgatəm choreographer Cameron Fraser-Monroe was invited to guest teach a "Dance Composition II" class, and performers Logan Savard and Kyra Soo had the opportunity to join the class for the day. Stay tuned for more on our adventures in the Big Apple. 🍎

šɛgatəm was co-commissioned in partnership between Bard College Center for Indigenous Studies and New York City Center for the 2024 Fall for Dance Festival.

Photos feature participants in the class along with Cameron, Logan, Kyra, Chris Turyk (RWB Company Managing Director), Brandi Norton (Curator of Public Programs for the Bard College Centre for Indigenous Studies), and Tara Lorenzen (Dance Program Director for Bard College)

To conduct a symphony is one thing, but to do so "in concert” with a ballet performance is quite another.

Join Geneviève Leclair, Conductor, the guest conductor for Giselle, as she shares her insights on the interplay between music and dance. She will explore how breath serves as a vital connection, creating a unique art form through its rhythmic ebb and flow. Presented as part of Dinner & Ballet preceding the November 9 performance of Giselle. >> secure your seat at rwb.org

Photos of Geneviève supplied
💙 Giselle Production Supporter The Richardson Foundation
❤️ Arts Partner Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
💛 Live Music Benefactor The Asper Foundation
📍 Performing at Centennial Concert Hall

Act 2 of Giselle is a prime example of the "ballet blanc," a trope in classical ballet where the female-presenting dancers are all costumed in white tutus. 🕊️ Dances in this style feature a cohesive geometric pattern and characters that represent supernatural phenomena like fairies, magical creatures, or (in the case of Giselle) ghosts. Other examples of the "white ballet" include Swan Lake, the Snow scene in Nutcracker, and "The Kingdom of the Shades" in La Bayadère.

🤍 See the magic on stage November 7-10 >> tickets at rwb.org

📷 RWB Company in Giselle 2015 by Réjean Brandt Photography
💙 Production Supporter The Richardson Foundation
❤️ Arts Partner Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
💛 Live Music Benefactor The Asper Foundation
📍 Performing at Centennial Concert Hall
✨ CREATIVE TEAM:
Choreography: Peter Wright, after Jules Perrot, Jean Coralli and Marius Petipa
Scenery & Costume Design: Peter Farmer
Lighting Design: Nicholas Cernovitch
Music: Adolphe Adam