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Beginning Sept. 21, 91���� will host the opening of the American Repertory Ballet’s performance season, as well as a week of events, presentations and performances that celebrate five years of Artistic Director Douglas Martin’s leadership.

“American Repertory Ballet has made huge strides under Douglas’ artistic vision,” says ARB Executive Director Vanessa Logan. “We are glad to celebrate these five years and the promise of many successful anniversaries to come with this opening week at 91����.

American Repertory Ballet will present the Season Premiere in the Bart Luedeke Center Theater on Friday, Sept. 25, and Saturday, Sept. 26, at 7:30 p.m. Season Premiere will feature three highlights from Martin's first two years of leadership: Martin's Ephemeral Possessions, set to Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings; internationally acclaimed choreographer Kirk Peterson's Glazunov Variations, set to sections of Glazunov's music for the classical ballet Raymonda; and ARB resident choreographer Mary Barton's Straight Up With a Twist, set to music by contemporary folk music composer, Kaila Flexer. Straight Up With a Twist was last performed on tour at Jacob’s Pillow, an internationally-renowned center for dance history and performance in the Berkshire mountains.

The company has begun its performance season with a residency at Rider for the past several years. Rider dance students take courses for credit at ARB’s Princeton Ballet School throughout the year, and ARB’s residency on campus affords the students additional master classes, unique insights into the workings of a professional ballet company and the opportunity to watch the company perform, without having to leave the campus.

The partnership between ARB’s Princeton Ballet school and the University was conceived over 20 years ago by Princeton Ballet School director Mary Pat Robertson and former chair of 91����’s Fine Arts Department Dr. Patrick Chmel, then developed by Rider’s Dr. Kim Chandler Vaccaro. “This truly one-of-a-kind partnership has played a large role in the providing enriching opportunities for Rider students throughout the years,” Logan says. “Rider is such a fitting setting to celebrate not only ARB’s artistic success, but also the organization’s remarkable educational successes.”

This year, as a celebration of Martin’s five years of artistic leadership, the week’s festivities will include a master class for University students by Douglas Martin, a “Meet the Dancers” On Pointe event, Open House Dress Rehearsal, and a State of the Art Address — ARB’s first public meeting — in addition to the typical residency program.

The master class will be held on Monday, Sept. 21, at 4:30 p.m. The “Meet the Dancers” On Pointe will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 23, at 5:15 p.m. and will provide attendees a unique opportunity to meet the company’s international, professional dancers and see excerpts of the upcoming performance season. The Open House Dress Rehearsal will take place on Thursday, Sept. 24, at 4:30 p.m. in the theater at the Bart Luedeke Center, and the State of the Art Address will immediately follow at 6 p.m. in the Bart Luedeke Center Fireside Lounge. The On Pointe, Open House Dress Rehearsal and State of the Art Address are all free and open to the public.

“We look forward to bringing this wide-ranging program to 91����,” Martin says. “From classical to contemporary, tutus to unitards, we are showing a full range of what the ballet vocabulary can produce. It’s a great education for the Rider dance students and a beautiful evening for the general public.”