BalletNEXT will get “Between the Strings” when it takes the stage April 7 and 8 at the Rose Wagner Leona Black Box in Salt Lake City. The program features three works that will showcase the growth that Park City’s resident ballet company has experienced since Founder and Artistic Director Michele Wiles moved to the Wasatch Back from New York City in 2019. “I feel like everyone has gone through some sort of transformation and evolution everywhere,” said Wiles, a former principal dancer for the American Ballet Theatre. “I know BalletNext has evolved.” One work, “Quantum Memory Shift,” is a direct extension from one of Wiles’ earlier works called “Translucent Materials.”  “I talked with the dancers of how this piece is like memories of walking around in New York while in this sort of dreamlike state,” she said. “I remember these dreams I was having when I was about to leave ABT. They were sort of tsunami dreams, these tidal waves.” When thinking about the choreography, Wiles feels like “Quantum Memory Shift” takes fragments of what it was before in 2023 when BalletNext first staged “Translucent Materials.” “It’s like we’re using a part of that memory and bringing it into 2026 with new dancers,” she said. “And then we’re trying something new, with a representation of a tsunami with the entire company.” The work ends with a trio performed by Wiles, BalletNext resident dancer Matthew Helms and guest artist, Bashaun Williams. “We are dancing to (the song) ‘God Is a Weapon’ by the band Falling In Reverse,” Wiles said. That segment features overhead lifts Wiles never thought she would do after suffering a back injury in 2005, just at the time she was promoted to Principal at American Ballet Theatre. “It was funny because Matt did this lift, a big overhead lift you see in ‘Giselle,’ which is something I had never done in my career because for me it takes a tremendous amount of trust with my partner,” she said. “So this lift was and is symbolic of the transformation and growth of what’s happening with everything.” The program will also include a revival of Brian Reeder’s “Between the Two,” which premiered in 2023. “I’m super excited about it, and it’s interesting to bring Brian’s piece back and have that mirror ‘Quantum Memory Shift,’” Wiles said. “They are very different.” “Between the Two” is very structured and was created after Reeder asked BalletNext dancers  to create movement phrases inspired by letters, according to Wiles. “Then he took those phrases and fragmented them,” she said. “He was getting to know our new community here in Park City.” “Between the Two” is a complex work built on layers, Wiles said.  “It has this structure, but we keep circling back together,” she said. “We break off to do duets and solos, and then do some layered arm phrases. And we all randomly walk around, and then come back together as a community.” The work symbolizes how Wiles felt when she first moved to Park City, and how the company has branched out. “I was trying to figure things out and partnering with different people, and it evolved,” she said. “Now, I’m working with the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center in Salt Lake City. So there is this transformation again.” In addition to Williams, Sienna Hopper from the Olympic Ballet Theatre in Washington returns to perform with BalletNext, Wiles said. “Sienna is from the Olympic Ballet Theatre in Washington, and interestingly, Mara Vinson, one of the Olympic Ballet Theatre artistic directors, was in my class at the Kirov Academy,” she said. Since “Quantum Memory Shift” and “Between the Two” are considered intense works, Wiles decided to add a lighter piece, “Sway,” to the mix. Sienna Hopper, who dances with the Olympic Ballet Theatre in Washington, will return to perform in BalletNext’s performances of “Between the Strings” April 7 and 8 at the Rose Wagner Leona Black Box in Salt Lake City. Credit: Photo courtesy of Sienna Hopper “The music is by the Pussycat Dolls, and I consider this piece a palate cleanser,” she said. “I think this is a nice breather and something light and fun so the audience can take a breath.”  The overarching title of the productions is “Between the Strings,” which is a play on the “Between the Two” moniker, Wiles said.  “I decided to name it that because the music we use has a lot of strings,” she said. In addition to a live harpist — Carolyn Mumford, who will perform works of Philip Glass, Max Richter and Ludivico Einaudi during “Quantum Memory Shift” — the music will also include a string quartet and other recorded music by Devotchka and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, Caroline Shaw, Wiles said. “Caroline Shaw is spectacular,” she said. “(Choreographer) Pam Tanowitz used a Caroline Shaw piece, and it was amazing.” BalletNext: ‘Between the Strings’ When: 6:30 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday Where: Rose Wagner Performing Art Center, 128 W. Broadway, Salt Lake City Tickets: tinyurl.com/5y4jnctd Web: balletnext.org The post BalletNext grows and evolves ‘Between the Strings’ appeared first on Park Record. ...read more read less