Suzanne Farrell Ballet to Perform Nov. 5 at UB

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The University at Buffalo Center for the Arts will present Suzanne Farrell Ballet on Nov. 5 at 8 p.m. in the Mainstage theatre in the Center for the Arts, UB North Campus. Following the performance, there will be a post show discussion with Farrell. The performance is sponsored by M&T Bank.

Throughout the nearly three decades of her performing career, Suzanne Farrell was the most influential American ballerina of the late 20th century, as well as the exquisite muse of one of the undisputed masters of ballet. After retiring from the stage in 1989, she emerged as one of the world's most inspiring ballet teachers and directors.

She was one of George Balanchine's most celebrated muses, and today is a repetiteur for the George Balanchine Trust, the independent organization founded after the choreographer's death to oversee worldwide licensing and production. Since 1988 she has staged Balanchine's works for a range of companies worldwide.

Farrell began her association with The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in 1993, working with the Education Department. In 2001, she created the Kennedy Center's own ballet company, The Suzanne Farrell Ballet, and serves as artistic director. The group has evolved into a highly lauded ballet company, hailed by the New York Times' chief dance critic in 2007 as "one of the most courageous projects in ballet today."

In this unique program, Farrell provides onstage narration, navigating the audience through the evolution of Balanchine's legendary pas de deux style. The program begins with the pas de deux from the early years of Apollo, La Sonnambula, Ivesiana, La Valse, and Agon and continues through to the "Farrell years" of Meditation, Don Quixote, and Diamonds. The program concludes with the grand pas de deux of Stars and Stripes.

Tickets for the Suzanne Farrell Ballet are $34.50 general admission and $16.50 for students (any school). Tickets are available at the Center for the Arts Box Office from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and all Ticketmaster locations, including ticketmaster.com. To charge tickets, call 1-800-745-3000; in Canada, call 416-870-8000. For group sales, call 716-645-6771. For more information call 716-645-2787.