Ballet 5:8 In Grand Rapids With A Story Of Defiant Hope In The Holocaust
Ballet 5:8 returns to the Devos Center for Arts and Worship for the world premiere of Butterfly. Artistic Director Julianna Rubio Slager’s newest work recreates the gripping scenes of the WWII Terezin ghetto, where residents created masterful works of art in defiance of their oppressors. The performance will also feature Slager’s Meditations, inspired by C.S. Lewis’ essay Meditations in a Toolshed, and Slager’s playful Brothers & Sisters exploring the beauty and contrast of men and women.
The performance will be held on Saturday, October 5 at 7:00pm at the Devos Center for Arts and Worship, Grand Rapids Christian High School, 2300 Plymouth Ave SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49506, including a post-performance Q&A with Slager and artists from the cast. Tickets are $25 for adults, $22 for students and seniors, and $15 for children ages 12 and under.
Slager’s gripping work Butterfly looks back on WWII Terezin where, from the ashes of this hellscape, glimmers of hope emerge. In Terezin, a Jewish art teacher refused to let the children die without hope. She challenged her students to create art that spoke of their misery but also of the hope that lies within. Every human, male or female, desirable or marginalized, born of privilege or born of poverty, each one is precious and created with purpose. Slager says, ”The remnants of art from the nearly forgotten children of Terezin challenge us to look with clear eyes upon our potential for both evil and beauty.”
Ballet 5:8 looks to build upon the success of last year’s performance of The Space in Between. Ken Norris of WKTV Journal in Grand Rapids said The Space in Between “does not disappoint” and that “Slager successfully uses the full strength of her dancers… as well as the thematic power of C.S. Lewis’ story The Great Divorce...”.
Ballet 5:8 Artistic Director and Resident Choreographer Julianna Rubio Slager is co-founder of Ballet 5:8 and brings a wealth of experience to her work. Ballet 5:8 began touring nationally in 2014 and brought Slager's critically acclaimed ballets to audiences across the nation. As a female minority, Slager hopes that her leadership and creative work at Ballet 5:8 will pave the way for other diverse women in professional ballet.