Performing arts enthusiasts wait breathlessly all year for one of the hottest social events of the spring season: Command Performance La Fete du Ballet gala,presented by the Texas International Theatrical Arts Society (TITAS). The sophisticated springtime affair celebrates the arts through a beautiful series of dances starring world-renowned performers, followed by a seated dinner.
Supporters, sporting tuxes and all manner of sheen and sparkle, descended on the Winspear Opera House for the 19th annual fundraiser. Before the performance began, Michael Ginsberg was honored with the Tom Adams Award for his dedication to the organization and the arts. Ginsberg has funded the Command Performance commissioning projects for five years and has been devoted to the arts since he was a young boy.
The ethereal stage performance was divided into two acts with a series of movements. The show featured esteemed dancers Wendy Whelan, of New York City Ballet; Desmond Richardson, of Complexions Contemporary Ballet; Yuan Yuan Tan and Damian Smith, of San Francisco Ballet; Carla Körbes and Karel Cruz, of Pacific Northwest Ballet; and Janessa Touchet and Cervilio Miguel Amador, of the Cincinnati Ballet.
The thrilling, world-class performance ranged from the mellifluous Concerto Dsch Pas de Deux choreographed by Alexei Ratmansky to the mysterious excerpt from Fight or Flight choreographed by Lisa Giobbi.
After the show, guests moved to the main lobby of the opera house for an elegant dinner. With visions of ballet still dancing in their heads, they switched gears for a performance by the R&B ensemble from Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts.
Joining TITAS executive director/artistic director Charles Santos were devotees Delia Crossley, Erika and George Moussa, Lorri Michel, Lucilo Pena, Kurt Anderson, Lee Cobb, Risha Ganti, Read Gendler and Kathy Chamberlain.
The R&B ensemble from Booker T. Washington School for the Performing and Visual Arts lit up the Winspear post-ballet.
