Joffrey Ballet performs Stories in Motion

For twenty years, the Joffrey Ballet has called Chicago home. Every year the talented performers bring gorgeous storytelling to stage with beautiful dancing and glorious music. This year, the Joffrey Ballet kicks off its 20th Anniversary Season with Stories in Motion, which explores the idea of ballet telling stories. The three performances include two fan favorites and one premiere.  

George Blanchine’s Prodigal Son is making a return to the stage. The Joffrey Ballet hasn’t performed the piece since 2000, which gives audiences a chance to experience the story of the prodigal son in a new light. Based upon the Gospel of St. Luke, this story tells the tale of a son who leaves seeking adventure and returns for redemption.

Anthony Tudor’s Lilac Garden, last performed by the Joffrey in 2008, is described as showing ”Tudor’s increasing interest in revealing psychological motivation through choreography.”  The story takes the audience through a young woman’s farewell to her lover, on the eve of her wedding to a man she does not love.

The Joffrey Ballet takes to the stage to perform RAkU, an Asian-themed production created by San Francisco ballet resident choreographer Yuri Possokhov, for the first time. RAkU is a “contemporary ballet with modernist costume and set design, moving screens and projections.” This is a story about lovers torn apart by war and ”the schemes of a Buddhist monk driven mad by obsessive love.”

Stories in Motion performances run Thursday, September 18 through Sunday, September 21 at the Auditorium Theater in Chicago. For ticket information, visit www.ticketmaster.com.