PNB Blog
Q&A with Soloist Miles Pertl
What is one role that holds special significance for you? The role Friar Laurence in Romeo et Juliet is a role that I have cherished exploring. It is a character that demands a full emotional buy-in on top of the ballet technique.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream Programs Through the Years
Celebrating 38 years of A Midsummer Night's Dream at Pacific Northwest Ballet
Q&A with Principal Dancer James Kirby Rogers
Do you have talents of passions outside of dance? Chess is really fun. Our rehearsal director, Otto, is ridiculously good at chess, and he beats me all the time!
Q&A with Principal Dancer Lesley Rausch
If you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would it be? Worry less, enjoy more. You wouldn’t believe how fast a 20-year career can fly by.
The Man behind the Music of “Midsummer”: Felix Mendelssohn
In just a few short weeks, the bright, staccato strings and the playful, blustering brass of Felix Mendelssohn’s Op. 21, the overture of George Balanchine's A Midsummer Night’s Dream, will fill McCaw Hall. Mendelssohn was just 17 when he wrote this famous overture. He went on to live a bustling life full of creating and performing music. Eduard Devrient described Mendelssohn as “always bubbling over like champagne in a small glass.” Read on to learn more about this man, who was just as vivacious as his compositions.
Q&A with Principal Dancer Lucien Postlewaite
What is the most rewarding part of being a dancer? Getting to share my soul through my physicality is liberating, scary, and supremely fulfilling. I love working with a team to create magic moments for the audience.
Q&A with Principal Dancer Elizabeth Murphy
What is one role that holds special significance for you? Little mortal jump was the ballet that made me fall in love with contemporary works. I feel fortunate to have been pushed outside my comfort zone and discover a whole new world of dance that has continued to bless and enriched my career.
Q&A with Principal Dancer Elle Macy
What is the best advice that you've ever received? David Dawson told me to “Be brave!” minutes before the curtain came up on Empire Noir. I tell myself this often before performing, AND it’s also pretty applicable in my non-dancing life as well. The simplicity of an affirmation, am I right?
Q&A with Principal Dancer Cecilia Iliesiu
How has your approach to the career changed over time? My career at PNB and the pandemic has taught me to take myself less seriously and whole-heartedly embrace my successes and struggles equally.