Dance

CAL PERFORMANCES COMPANY DEBUT

Paris Opera Ballet

A North American Premiere by Hofesh Shechter

Thu, Oct 2, 7:30pm
Fri, Oct 3, 8pm
Sat, Oct 4, 2pm, Zellerbach Hall

HOFESH SHECHTER

New Work

A sensational and daring artistic collaboration! Steeped in a revered ballet tradition that dates to the court of Louis XIV, the stunning dancers of the Paris Opera Ballet meet the visceral and emotive choreography of London-based choreographer Hofesh Shechter in the North American premiere of a new evening-length work. Shechter, "London’s most vital choreographer" (Time Out London), creates vivid, urgent cinematic tableaus in his acclaimed works, and his bold new creation has been envisioned especially for this exquisite French company. This special tour includes only two US cities, and just this single West Coast engagement— book your seats now!

Lead Sponsor: Anonymous
Patron Sponsor: Rockridge Market Hall
Major Patron of the Paris Opera: CHANEL
Sponsor of the Paris Opera outreach: Crédit Agricole Corporate Investment Bank

Every dance looked fabulous…amorous sensuality and irresistible virtuosity”

— Los Angeles Times

CAL PERFORMANCES COMPANY DEBUT

Sadler’s Wells and Shaolin Temple present

Sutra

Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui / Antony Gormley / Szymon Brzóska

with the Monks of Shaolin Temple

Sat, Nov 8, 8pm
Sun, Nov 9, 3pm, Zellerbach Hall

Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, choreographer
Antony Gormley, visual creation and design
Szymon Brzóska, composer

Contemporary dance and ancient martial arts combine in this award-winning collaboration between Belgian choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, sculptor Antony Gormley, composer Szymon Brzóska, and 20 Buddhist monks from the Shaolin Temple in China’s Henan Province. Sutra explores the Shaolin kung fu tradition in the context of contemporary culture, inviting a cadre of modern-day practitioners to lend their skills—the flying kicks, backflips, and shadow-boxing practiced as part of their spiritual discipline—to a humorous fable about a European outsider learning about their monastery. With clever set design by Gormley and a chamber music score by Brzóska performed live, the production has earned rave reviews across the globe.

Co-produced with Athens Festival, Festival de Barcelona Grec, Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, La Monnaie Brussels, Festival d’Avignon, Fondazione Musica per Roma, and Shaolin Cultural Communications Company

A brave, thrilling, elliptical piece…[an] odyssey into the mind of a Zen Buddhist”

— The Telegraph, UK

BAY AREA PREMIERE

MOMIX

Alice

Sat, Nov 29, 2pm & 8pm THANKSGIVING WEEKEND
Sun, Nov 30, 3pm, Zellerbach Hall

Moses Pendleton, artistic director

Follow the mesmerizing dancer-illusionists of MOMIX down the rabbit hole in Alice, a wild and fantastical take on Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland by company founder Moses Pendleton.

Blending illusion and acrobatics with a sense of whimsy and wonder, Alice features the bold athleticism and theatrical flair of MOMIX’s celebrated dancers as they traverse a series of absurdist vignettes inspired by Carroll’s characters that just get curiouser and curiouser!

Freakishly funny…an eccentric, magical journey”

— Santa Barbara Independent

BAY AREA PREMIERE

Mark Morris Dance Group

MOON

A Cal Performances Co-commission

Fri–Sat, Jan 23–24, 8pm
Sun, Jan 25, 3pm, Zellerbach Hall

Wendall K. Harrington, projections

Isaac Mizrahi, costumes

It’s hard to predict the next source of inspiration for the dizzyingly prolific and singularly creative choreographer Mark Morris—will it be an iconic Beatles album, a Baroque masterpiece, a biblical story?

This time, Morris looks upward—at the Moon!—to explore our fascination with our constant celestial companion. Live and recorded music, from folk song to pop hits to concert works, provide the sonic backdrop for Morris’ latest creation, a poetic and playful reflection on our attempts as earthlings to understand our enigmatic neighbor. As Morris says, “I’m interested in how the Moon came to be our fall-in-love token, and the mystery and glamour of it.”

MOON is commissioned by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in partnership with Arizona Arts Live, University of Arizona; Cal Performances, UC Berkeley; Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; and Mark Morris Dance Group.

Patron Sponsors: Helen and John Meyer (1/23)

Martha Graham Dance Company
GRAHAM100: A Three-Season Celebration of the Company’s 100th Anniversary

Sat, Feb 14, 8pm
Sun, Feb 15, 3pm, Zellerbach Hall

Janet Eilber, artistic director

It is impossible to overstate Martha Graham’s influence on dance in the past century. Her distinctive, groundbreaking movement technique has been carried in dancers’ bodies for generations; the works she commissioned have grown and multiplied over hundreds of performances; and her contributions to the art of stage design and dance production are countless. As early as the 1930s, the members of her company reflected diverse cultural backgrounds, and Graham’s commitment to experimentation and attention to contemporary social, political, psychological, and gender issues has forever altered the scope and direction of the art form. The extraordinary Graham company returns to Cal Performances for the first time in more than a decade to celebrate its 100th anniversary with classic Graham works such as the iconic Appalachian Spring, the psychological thriller Night Journey, and the anti-war protest Chronicle—all featuring Isamu Noguchi’s original sets—alongside newly commissioned dances by some of today’s most compelling choreographers. Jamar Roberts’ We the People, a collaboration with roots musician Rhiannon Giddens, explores rage and resistance; and in-demand choreography team Baye & Asa creates a new work in response to Graham’s seminal war protest, Cortege of Eagles. Hope Boykin, Ailey alumna and respected choreographer for dance, theater, and film, also premieres a new work.

Patron Sponsor: Beth DeAtley (2/15)

see full program

I wanted to begin not with characters or ideas, but with movements…I wanted significant movement. I did not want it to be beautiful or fluid. I wanted it to be fraught with inner meaning, with excitement and surge.”

— Martha Graham

CAL PERFORMANCES COMPANY DEBUT

A.I.M by Kyle Abraham

Sat, Feb 21, 8pm
Sun, Feb 22, 3pm, Zellerbach Hall

Charanee Wade, *vocals**
Crystal Monee Hall, *vocals**
Liany Mateo, *bass**
Luther Allison, *piano**
Otis Brown III, *drums**
Guy Dellacave, *saxophone**
Other musicians to be announced

Visionary choreographer Kyle Abraham brings his accomplished A.I.M (Abraham.In.Motion) company to Berkeley for its eagerly anticipated Cal Performances debut, featuring three works danced to live performances of the music that inspired them. Abraham tells stories at the intersection of Black and queer culture, reflecting on themes of love, isolation, and personal and social change. Max Roach’s track "The Gettin’" from his Freedom Now Suite infuses the movement on stage with a taut, edgy energy. If We Were a Love Song features moody music by Nina Simone sung by Crystal Monee Hall, setting the stage for a series of intimate solos and duets exploring different aspects of love. And the kinetic new 2 X 4 is a collaboration with composer and saxophonist Shelley Washington fueled by contrasts and oppositions.

*Cal Performances debut.

KYLE ABRAHAM

The Gettin’ (music: Max Roach, with arrangements and original compositions by Robert Glasper)
If We Were a Love Song (music: Nina Simone)
2 X 4 (music: Shelley Washington)

Lead Sponsor: Nadine Tang

[Abraham] likes to spread the love with his company, A.I.M, and, in doing so, broaden the viewer’s experience of what a dance concert…can be"

— The New York Times

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

Tue–Thu, Apr 7–9, 7:30pm
Fri, Apr 10, 8pm
Sat, Apr 11, 2pm & 8pm
Sun, Apr 12, 3pm, Zellerbach Hall

Alicia Graf Mack, artistic director

Matthew Rushing, associate artistic director

From its first public performances in 1958, to the premiere of the masterpiece Revelations in 1960, through the struggles of touring in the Civil Rights Movement, to the tragic loss of its founder in 1989—across so much social upheaval and cultural change, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater has thrived as a model of Black resilience and unparalleled artistic excellence. More change lies ahead as the company welcomes exciting new leadership and its first Berkeley performances under incoming artistic director Alicia Graf Mack. With brand-new commissions from next-generation creators and beloved works by Ailey himself, this revered institution continues to embody the values and vision of its founder through performances of exceptional power, beauty, and grace.

Patron Sponsors: Janice and Nicholas E. Brathwaite (4/7)

The Joffrey Ballet
Midsummer Night’s Dream

Fri, Apr 17, 7pm
Sat, Apr 18, 8pm
Sun, Apr 19, 3pm, Zellerbach Hall

Alexander Ekman, choreographer

Mikael Karlsson, composer
Anna von Hausswolff, vocalist

Straying far from Shakespeare’s familiar path, the peerless Joffrey Ballet returns to Berkeley with Alexander Ekman’s daring and exuberant Midsummer Night’s Dream, a mind-bending trip to a surreal realm of unearthly delights. This “odd, wonderful, provocative and utterly original work” (Chicago Sun Times) begins during the traditional Scandinavian summer solstice festival—the dancers celebrating a day of revelry and romance under the maypole—but soon blossoms into a sensual, otherworldly fantasy. Featuring Swedish indie rock sensation Anna von Hausswolff and performed to a score by composer Mikael Karlsson, Midsummer is a bold fusion of classical and contemporary ballet that artfully blurs the line between the real and the imagined, and makes us wonder, is it all a dream? This brilliant work always packs the house in the Joffrey’s hometown of Chicago, so order your tickets now!

Lead Sponsor: Anonymous
Major Support: Anonymous (4/17), Barbro Osher Pro Suecia Foundation (4/18), Beth DeAtley (4/19)

Cal Performances’ 2026 Gala with The Joffrey Ballet

SAVE THE DATE: FRI, APR 17, 2026

SEE THE NEXT PAGE FOR DETAILS >>

Cal Performances’ 2026 Gala with The Joffrey Ballet

SAVE THE DATE: FRI, APR 17, 2026

5:30pm Cocktail Reception
7pm Performance
9pm Gala Dinner

Cal Performances invites you to join us on Friday, April 17, 2026, for an unforgettable evening with The Joffrey Ballet. All proceeds from this event will support Cal Performances’ artistic initiatives and education programs. The best seats for the performance will be reserved for Gala guests. Seating will be limited, so we encourage you to save the date and plan to be part of this festive high-profile event. More information will be available soon. In the meantime, contact Cal Performances’ Development Office at 510.642.8653 or donate@calperformances.org with any questions.

Which Cal Performances company debut are you most excited about?

Paris Opera Ballet
Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui / Antony Gormley / Szymon Brzóska with the Monks of Shaolin Temple
A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
All of the above!

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