AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Ballet Austin is closing out its season with a rendition of the iconic love story "Romeo and Juliet." Rehearsals are underway now before the production hits the stage at Austin's Long Center May 9-11 during Mother's Day weekend. Tickets range from $20-$125, with performances F riday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday at 3 p.m. Artistic Director Stephen Mills said the dancers rehearse the dozen scenes for six hours each day. "It's just an incremental process of teaching one step, adding another step," Mills said. Then by the end, after about a couple of weeks, the ballet is up and ready for full rehearsals, full runs of things." While Shakespeare focused on the words, Mills places his emphasis on "emotionally charged classic choreography." Stephen Mills' Romeo Juliet. (Photo by Tony Spielberg, courtesy of Ballet Austin.) The set is meant to replicate the medieval town of Verona and mixes a setting made out of old steel with projections of famous paintings from the era. "It's this mix of contemporary and classic that comes together in a way that makes it very relevant," Mills said. Aara Krumpe Paul Michael in Stephen Mills' Romeo Juliet. (Photo by Anne Marie Bloodgood, courtesy of Ballet Austin.) The show lasts approximately 100 minutes and is broken into three acts. Mills said he hopes audiences take away the impression of young love and possibility. "We are in Austin in the middle of May, there's so much possibility in the spring," he said. "It's all regeneration and looking forward to the future. This story really is forward-looking, and I hope people take that when they leave." ...read more read less