Alabama Ballet’s first major performance of the 2019/2020 season will be “Blue Suede Shoes,” being presented Oct. 4-6 at the BJCC Concert Hall.
Dennis Nahat’s full-length ballet, danced to 36 master recordings of Elvis Presley songs, combines classical dance with classic rock, extending traditional ballet to rock and disco. The rock-and-roll ballet, with a good helping of jazz, follows three friends over almost 20 years, starting with high school in the 1950s and rolling through an age of innocence, the social changes of the 1960s and the disco era of the 1970s.
The 90-minute ballet has 16 sets and 280 costumes, all designed by Hollywood fashion icon Bob Mackie.
“Bob’s done a stunning design look for us,” Nahat, said. “It’s a very contemporary take on the 1950s, and the stage is always filled with so much action that the audience barely has time to blink or else they miss something.”
There are no Elvis sightings, no impersonators.
“No one can duplicate him, so why bother? Besides, you see him plain as day when you hear the music,” Nahat said.
“We are excited to bring this spectacular production back to life and bring it to the Birmingham stage. It will really be a treat for everyone,” Tracey Alvey, artistic director of the ballet, said.
Alabama Ballet will also tour this production to Tupelo, Mississippi, in January in honor of Elvis’ 85th birthday.
Tickets for the Oct. 4-6 evening and matinee performances, sponsored by Protective Life, are available now at www.alabamaballet.org or on Ticketmaster, by calling 205.322.4300 or at the box office.
