[NoHo Arts District, CA] – Bolero X, choreographed by Shahar Binyamini, brings Ravel’s iconic score to life at The Soraya on Saturday, November 15, featuring Ballet BC and USC Kaufman dancers in a sweeping, high-energy performance.
About the Ballet BC Program
Bolero is a constant musical underscoring in our lives. From television commercials to marching bands, the long steady crescendo is mesmerizing and euphoric. Ravel’s masterpiece approaches its century milestone, and in the hands of Israeli choreographer Shahar Binyamini, the pulsating drive and excitement multiply, as have the ranks of Ballet BC dancers, tripling their forces. The members of The Soraya’s resident company are joined by dancers from the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance for a work that received emphatic reviews in Montreal and Vancouver, British Columbia, hailed as breathtaking, a triumph, and a sweeping expression of joy.
Composer Maurice Ravel’s Boléro is nearly a century old, yet it remains a constant musical underscoring in our lives. From television commercials to marching bands, the long steady crescendo is mesmerizing and euphoric. In the hands of Israeli choreographer Shahar Binyamini, the pulsating drive and excitement multiply in BOLÉRO X as have the ranks of Ballet BC dancers, tripling their forces. The members of The Soraya’s resident company will be joined by dancers from the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance for a work that received emphatic reviews in Montreal and Vancouver, British Columbia, hailed as “breathtaking,” “a triumph,” and “a sweeping expression of joy.”
Sofia Nappi’s new work will make its world premiere on Nov. 6 in Ballet BC’s Trilogy program, performed at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver. At this time, Ballet BC has not released the title of the new work but will announce it in time for its U.S. debut at The Soraya on Nov. 15.
The polished and mesmerizing SWAY from Ballet BC Artistic Director and French choreographer Medhi Walerski, makes its Soraya debut. With inspiration taken from the lines of Emily Dickinson’s “Hope is the thing with feathers” (1862), SWAY is a sophisticated work for seven dancers where Walerski’s inimitable movement language — infused with elegance and nuance — shines bright.
“Medhi Walerski is one of the great figures in the dance world – dancer, choreographer, and now Artistic Director of Ballet BC,” said Thor Steingraber, Soraya Executive and Artistic Director. “He is known worldwide for his outsized contribution to contemporary ballet, in a professional life that is still in the earliest stages of its unfolding. We are fortunate to have such a vital and robust partnership with Ballet BC and proud to include them as our dance company-in-residence.”
What:
A new work by Sofia Nappi
SWAY by Medhi Walerski
BOLERO X by Shahar Binyamini
When:
Saturday, November 15 | 8PM
Tickets:
Price includes all fees. Ticket prices $46–$94
Where:
Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts (The Soraya)
18111 Nordhoff Street, Northridge, CA 91330
About Ballet BC at The Soraya
Ballet BC was named The Soraya’s dance company-in-residence in 2023, ahead of its third visit to the venue, and had two world premieres at The Soraya on May 6, 2023 — Passing by Swedish born, former Nederlands Dans Theater dancer, and award-winning choreographer Johan Inger, and 20 People by Israeli dancer and choreographer Roy Assaf. The company’s most recent performance at The Soraya on Nov. 23, 2024, featured Medhi Walerski’s Chamber and Silent Tides, and Crystal Pite’s Frontier. The 2025-26 Season marks the company’s fifth engagement at The Soraya.
Additional Information about Ballet BC’s Program
Sofia Nappi, an Italian choreographer and the founder/ artistic director of KOMOCO, spent the end of last summer immersed in creation with Ballet BC and has ultimately created a piece “rooted in her first encounter with the (Vancouver) company 14 years ago.” Nappi is quoted as saying that this new piece evolved from the freedom of arriving in the studio with Ballet BC without a fixed idea and continue to develop upon learning each dancer’s “strong individualities,” which allowed for “collective intelligence to emerge.”
“The process becomes circular: time, space, and people shaping the work together,” Nappi said. For a glimpse at the creative process and hear more about the collaboration from Nappi herself, click here>>
Originally created for NDT 2 in 2019 and set to an original score by Belgian composer Adrien Cronet, Walerski’s SWAY is a rich, layered rumination on our ability to communicate without words is highlighted by dynamic group work and deeply captivating duets. A moving and highly memorable ode to hope and possibility.
Shahar Binyamini’s global sensation makes its Soraya debut! A “masterful tribute to unity, power, and the collective human experience” (PBS), BOLÉRO X is a pure celebration of dance, marked by raw, inventive partnering and breathtaking synchronization.
About Ballet BC — The Soraya’s Dance Company-in-Residence
Led by Artistic Director Medhi Walerski, Ballet BC is Canada’s preeminent contemporary dance company. Founded in 1986 by David Y. H. Lui, Jean Orr and Sheila Begg, with Annette av Paul as founding Artistic Director, Ballet BC has been at the forefront of the creation, production, and education of contemporary dance in Canada and around the world for almost 40 years. Ballet BC aims to create dance at its most essential: visceral, thought-provoking, and transformative. Attracting top international talent, its twenty dancers are a group of open-minded and curious artists, each unique for their dynamic movement while sharing an intuitive passion for their art form.
The company is deeply committed to creation and collaboration and presents a diverse repertoire that seeks to push the art form forward. Choreographers include William Forsythe, Sharon Eyal and Gai Behar, Medhi Walerski, Crystal Pite, Johan Inger, Imre and Marne van Opstal, Adi Salant, Jiří Kylian, Micaela Taylor, Bobbi Jene Smith and Or Schraiber, and Out Innerspace.
Through its bold and distinctive style and approach, Ballet BC has made a unique contribution to the awareness and development of dance in Canada and around the world. The company performs throughout each season at Vancouver’s Queen Elizabeth Theatre, and on tour at the world’s most renowned stages.
Beyond its performances, the company is a leader and resource in the community through a wide range of education and professional development initiatives, which aim to share the power of dance with the widest audience possible.
About the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts (The Soraya)
The Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for The Performing Arts (The Soraya) is an award-winning, state of-the-art 1,700-seat theatre that opened in 2011 as the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC). Through a transformative gift by Younes and Soraya Nazarian, the venue was renamed The Soraya in 2017. The Soraya is located on the campus of California State University Northridge, the intellectual and cultural heart of the San Fernando Valley.
Executive and Artistic Director Thor Steingraber, in his 12th year leading the organization, sums up what makes The Soraya a central piece of Los Angeles arts and culture. “At The Soraya, we hold a high standard of excellence for every performance from a vast array of artistic disciplines, and we hold steadfast to our commitment to the value and impact of the performing arts in community-building, for the Valley’s 1.8 million residents and beyond.”
The Soraya’s 2025-26 Season is a journey through the expansive sounds of orchestras, the freestyle vibes of jazz, the innovations of dance luminaries, and a vast array of global voices. The Soraya continues its vigorous commitment to excelling, innovating, and amplifying access for Valley residents, students, and arts lovers across Southern California.
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