PRESS RELEASES

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NEWS & REVIEWS

REVIEW  | Dance Commentary – Scene and Heard
By Heather Desaulnier  |  June 2018
Oakland Ballet Company marked the transition from May to June with Scene & Heard, a selection of work dedicated to the breadth and range of story in ballet. For this program, Artistic Director Graham Lustig charged six choreographers with the task of creating short narrative ballets. The resulting commissions (three from within the OBC family and three from local choreographers) made for a terrific afternoon of choreography, danced by a company that is looking impressively strong.  |  click here to read more

REVIEW  | The San Francisco Chronicle – Scene and Heard
By Allen Ulrich  |  June 2018
Most ballet audiences love a good story graphically told, but not all choreographers can spin a yarn successfully. That gift requires both instinct and training. So, bravo to Oakland Ballet Artistic Director Graham Lustig, who planned his company’s spring season around the art of the narrative. No fewer than six premieres by local dance makers filled the schedule.  |  click here to read more

REVIEW  |  Oakland Ballet’s Jangala
By Joanna Harris  |  March 2018
All the staff, cast and dancers and especially Graham Lustig are to congratulated for this extraordinary production. It is wonderful to know that Lustig, is including the Oakland community in his outreach and reaching that community where they live, in the various neighborhood high schools.  |  click here to read more

REVIEW  |  Oakland Ballet’s Jangala
By Anoushka Agrawal  |  March 2018
There is something remarkably charming about the blend of the traditional with the contemporary — as if two completely different cultures and eras are merged into one. Oakland Ballet Company’s “Jangala” exemplifies this.  |  click here to read more

REVIEW  |  The East Bay Times – Graham Lustig’s The Nutcracker 2017
By Sally Hogarty |  December 2017
Some children in the Bay Area may have “sugar plums dancing in their heads” as the holiday season draws near, but just as many dream of something a bit more substantial – a nutcracker. Much more than the variety used to open nuts, this particular nutcracker can become real, magically turning its wooden self into a gallant prince.  |  click here to read more

REVIEW  |  The San Francisco Chronicle – Graham Lustig’s The Nutcracker 2017
By Allen Ulrich |  December 2017
For Oaklanders, a sure sign that Christmas is fast upon us is sighting the 19th century balloon taxi that whisks heroine Marie to the Land of the Sweets. That glorious contraption was spied at the Paramount Theatre on Saturday, Dec. 23, when the Oakland Ballet Company opened its all-too-brief annual run of “The Nutcracker.”  |  click here to read more

REVIEW  |  Critical Dance – Luna Mexicana
By Bryn Namavari  |  November 2017
The show brought a cabaret feel to the ‘traditional’ setting of the Paramount, and in many ways was a lively street festival transported to the stage. While it is hard to put a finger on exactly what this show is other than to say it is a “revue,” the audience showed a truly amazing appreciation for the programming and stood out as one of the most exuberant groups to attend a performance in the locale. The entire evening was enveloped in a sense of pageantry: a mélange of traditions, exhibition and celebration. Many audience members embraced the spirit of the night arriving in fancy dress including painted faces, vibrant floral headdresses and even full-length gowns.  |  click here to read more

REVIEW  |  ArtsSF – Luna Mexicana
By Paul Hertelendy  |  November 2017
The Mexican counterpart to the European Day of the Dead is a joyous feast of color and vivacity despite all the skulls and skeletons dancing about the Paramount stage (as well as others who were ticket-buyers, watching from the prime seats out front, with elaborate face paint). The performance pace was breath-taking, the caliber of dance and music unassailable. |  click here to read more