Westmoreland Ballet takes to St. Clair Park highlighting excerpt from ‘Sleeping Beauty’
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The Westmoreland Ballet Company will celebrate spring with a performance at 2 p.m. Saturday in Robertshaw Amphitheater in St. Clair Park, along Maple Avenue in downtown Greensburg.
The highlight of the performance will be “Precious Jewels,” an excerpt from “The Sleeping Beauty.” Four other pieces also are on the bill, including one by special guests, The Dance Alley of Latrobe.
“‘Precious Jewels’ will be our big featured number and the only pointe piece,” said artistic director Lacey Gigliotti. “It will feature our more advanced dancers.”
The dancers portray fairies presenting gifts at the wedding of Prince Desire and Princess Aurora, the Sleeping Beauty. They represent emerald, diamond, sapphire and ruby, Gigliotti said.
Traditionally presented as a pas de quatre, or dance for four, this version of “Precious Jewels” will include eight dancers, with two representing each jewel, she said.
Gigliotti described Westmoreland Ballet’s other pieces as:
• “Morning in the Garden,” a lighthearted piece with original choreography set to music by Russian composer Alexander Glazunov, in which the intermediate dancers portray katydids and the pre-schoolers are flower petals.
• “Piccolo Piece,” a whimsical piece “full of curiosity and mischief” with choreography by emerging artist Genevieve Shultz set to classical music by English composer Benjamin Britten.
• “Dawn Rising,” a neoclassical/abstract ballet set to “In Your Eyes” and “Red Rain,” songs from Peter Gabriel’s 1986 album, “So.”
“It expresses the anticipation of a new adventure, the hope we have that covid will be over soon and good things are coming,” Gigliotti said. “It’s a tribute to the inspiration, dedication and persistence of these dancers through all that’s happened in the past year.”
The Dance Alley piece is “another lyrical, hopeful piece” by the company’s choreographer/director Amanda Dumnich, Gigliotti said.
The performance will run between 45 and 60 minutes. Noting the possibility of rain in Saturday’s forecast, Gigliotti said it will go on regardless of weather conditions.
A basket raffle also will be held, featuring about 20 themed baskets, including lottery tickets, pet products, coffee, merchandise and gift certificates from local businesses, restaurants, breweries and wineries.
While advanced ticket sales have ended, tickets will be available at the gate. Cost is $15 for bleacher seats or $5 for reserved lawn seats.
Details: westmorelandballet.com