Avant Chamber Ballet Premieres Love Stories for Valentine’s Day

Avant Chamber Ballet dances into 2025 with Love Stories February 14-15th at 7:30pm at Moody Performance Hall. The program is a triple bill with a company premiere by Paul Mejia, and two new works commissioned through the Women’s Choreography Project by choreographers Fernanda Oliveira (Pennsylvania Ballet) and Christina Ghiardi (Nevada Ballet Theater).

The evening celebrates all definitions of love at with three inspiring ballets featuring live music from pianist Anastasia Markina.

BRAHMS WALTZES, choreographed by Paul Mejia, is a masterful interpretation of Brahms’ 16 waltzes for solo piano and one of Mejia’s most acclaimed works by critics and audiences alike. 

Fernanda Oliveira creates her third ballet for ACB with POEM. The ballet is inspired by four of the greatest American poets with music by Chopin. Each poem represents a different facet of love. “Of love”, by Mary Oliver speaks to love for people, nature, life; a hopeful kind of love. “The Conditional”, by Ada Limon is about romantic love and contentment – a secure, permanent love in the face of uncertainty. “Mad Girl’s Love Song” by Sylvia Plath speaks to a lonely, one-sided kind of love. And, finally, “Touched by an Angel” by Maya Angelou is about how all love is worth it. It destroys us, and it sets us free. 

The evening culminates with the premiere of Christina Ghiardi’s SOTT’ER CELO DE ROMA, with music from great Italian love songs performed live by Alexander McConkie. The ballet is a love letter to Rome – the sun-drenched piazzas and cobblestone streets where passion and desire intertwine in an unforgettable way.

Don’t miss your chance to be swept away by the magic of live music and dance this Valentines Day weekend! Tickets for Love Stories start at $25 and are available at www.AvantChamberBallet.org. 

Avant Chamber Ballet Love Stories, photo credit Jordan Fraker