THE
JOFFREY BALLET OF CHICAGO TO HOST ANNUAL FAMILY NUTCRACKER LUNCHEON ON
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 11, 1999
CHICAGO
(November, 1999) Gerald
Arpino, the Artistic Director and Founder of The Joffrey Ballet of
Chicago, is pleased to announce the second annual Joffrey Family
Nutcracker Luncheon to be held on Saturday, December 11 at 11:30 a.m. in
the Grand Ballroom of the Chicago Hilton and Towers Hotel, 720 S. Michigan
Avenue. The afternoon is
created for family members of all ages to dress in their holiday best and
get into the spirit of the season, and to see a matinee performance of
Robert Joffrey’s The
Nutcracker, sponsored by the Chicago Tribune.
The Nutcracker is being performed at the Auditorium Theatre, 50 East
Congress Parkway.
The
Luncheon, now an annual event hosted by the Joffrey’s Board of
Directors, will be a fun-filled afternoon including a performance by The
Chicago Academy of the Arts Chorus, storytelling, face painting, Holiday
Carols with Stanley Paul, and a dessert presentation by Sara Lee.
Robert Joffrey’s
uniquely American, Currier & Ives version of The Nutcracker has been
extended to five weeks this year – set in the Americas of the 1850’s,
this production will include 120 children from multi-cultural backgrounds.
With magical sets created by Oliver Smith, whose designs include West
Side Story and My Fair Lady; costumes designed by John David Ridge, Halston’s
successor; and Mother Ginger and the Mounted Mice by Kermit Love, who
designed Big Bird, audiences everywhere have been amazed, awed and
enchanted by this timeless tale.
The Joffrey Nutcracker
Family Luncheon is being chaired by JBC Board Member Mrs. Francis J.
(Nancy) Klimley, and assisted by JBC Board members Mrs. Dean L.
(Rosemarie) Buntrock of Hinsdale, Janet Helman of Chicago and Mrs. Joel V.
Williamson of Chicago. The
Luncheon committee for Luncheon is headed by Mrs. Cary J. Malkin of
Chicago, Mrs. Michael D. Emmert of Hinsdale, Mrs. John H. Elwood of the
North Shore, Mrs. Seth Lou Pirrepont of Lake Forest and Julia Walsh Wegner
of Oakbrook/Elmhurst.
The
cost of the Luncheon (which includes theater tickets) is $100 for adults
and $75 for children under 16 years of age and may be ordered by calling
312/739-0120, extension 44.
Proceeds
from this fundraising event directly benefit the Joffrey Ballet of
Chicago’s performance season, to maintain and revive its world-class
repertoire, to create and develop new ballets, and to extend The JBC’s
community outreach programs.