National Ballet of Ukraine includes Philly on first U.S. tour in over 30 years

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The National Ballet of Ukraine is returning to tour the United States for the first time in over 30 years, since the dissolution of the USSR. The first leg of the tour includes 16 cities on the East Coast, including Philadelphia.

The tour is both an artistic showcase by one of the most highly regarded dance companies in the world, and an act of cultural diplomacy during the ongoing Russian invasion into Ukraine.

“The war has taken so much from us, but will not take the spirit of the Ukrainian people,” said principal dancer Natalia Matsak. “We are embarking on this tour not only to show our culture, a reminder we are bound by so much more than a common enemy. We must not lose our humanity.”

Since the war began two years ago, the National Ballet of Ukraine has remained in its home theater, the Taras Shevchenko Opera House in Kyiv, but under audience restriction because it doubles as a bomb shelter.

In 2022, the company had traveled to Orlando, Florida, to perform as a benefit for the war effort. It was filmed and broadcast on PBS television, for which it won an Emmy award.

An alternative Ukrainian ballet company, the United Ukrainian Ballet formed by dancers in exile and based in The Netherlands, toured 60 cities in the United States earlier this year with its original production of “Giselle.”

The National Ballet will begin the East Coast leg of its U.S. tour on October 8 at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., then come to the Kimmel Center’s Miller Theater in Philadelphia on October 9. The company will return later this year and in 2025 to tour other parts of the country.

The dancer will perform a medley of classic dances from its repertoire, including excerpts from “Giselle,” “The Dying Swan,” “Don Quixote” and “La Bayadere.” They are touring with high-end technology, dancing before a giant 3D LED screen that will create an immersive effect for the audience.

“Let’s say it’s a scene where it’s snowing on the dancers. The snow will actually come out into the audience through 3D so that the line between the stage and the audience disappears,” said Edward Kasses of Princeton Entertainment, the tour’s presenting organization.

“You’ll feel like you’re one with the dancers and one with the performance in a way that’s never been done at a dance performance before,” he said.

Proceeds from sales of tickets, merchandise and individual donations will be given to Humanite, an organization that provides humanitarian aid to people in Ukraine as well as areas of conflict in the Middle East.

The ballet company will be joined on tour by The Ukrainian Shumka Dancers, a traditional folk dancing troupe based in Alberta, Canada.

“The tour represents much more than just a great, exquisite, high level ballet. It’s also a symbol of resilience and bravery of Ukrainian people,” said Oksana Markarova, the Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S. “An opportunity for Ukraine once again to celebrate our reach and remarkable cultural legacy, and share it with our friends.”