Annual Festival "World of Dance"

Each year, Brighton Ballet Theater holds its two-day "World of Dance" festival at the 1,200-seat Millennium Theater in Brighton Beach. The first night of the festival features a premiere of an original full-length ballet and an array of twenty dance pieces performed by BBT students, while the second night of the festival features a gala concert performed by over 400 BBT students. In previous years, guest stars at the festival have included prominent New York City politicians and the world-famous figure skating champion Oksana Baiul. In 2003, the Russian folk group "Golden Rooster" was a featured participant in the program.

The festival, which is seen by thousands of people each year and includes dance pieces from a wide range of national cultures, is a celebration of the diversity and artistic talent in the Brooklyn community. In addition to featuring professional dancers from some of the leading dance theaters in the former Soviet Union, the festival highlights the achievements of BBT's young dancers, some of them as young as age four. BBT places a major emphasis on creating live stage performance opportunities for its children, and this season-ending spectacular provides a unique opportunity for children to dance alongside professional dancers.

In 2003, the festival included the world premiere of "The Nanny's Story," a full-length ballet staged to the music of Peter Tchaikovsky's "Children's Album." BBT is the first dance theater to create a full-length ballet from these 24 musical pieces from Tchaikovsky. In addition, the first night of the festival included a number of folk dances from different national traditions, such as the Spanish Dance from "Swan Lake," a Moldavian Dance, a Gypsy Dance, a Georgian Dance, and several Ukrainian dances. The second night of the festival included 26 dance numbers performed by over 400 children in each of the dance divisions at BBT.

The production is funded in part by public funds from the New York State Council of the Arts, administered by the Brooklyn Arts Council, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. In 2003, BBT donated a portion of the proceeds raised by the performance to the children of Tikva, a Jewish orphanage in Odessa, Ukraine.

 

.