Dances Patrelle Presents In Dance, Francis Patrelle Festival of Ballets in Honor of the Company’s Late Founder
Company:
Dances Patrelle
Dances Patrelle shares the three ballets making up In Dance, Francis Patrelle from March 27 – 29, 2026 at MMAC (248 West 60th Street). The festival is presented in honor of the company’s late founder, Francis Patrelle, who passed away in December of 2025. Performances: 3/27- 28 at 7PM; 3/29 at 6PM. Tickets are $53 and can be purchased at https://ci.ovationtix.com/36899/production/1265474.
The evening opens with Double Martini, a bold and risqué romp through the songs of the 1920s and 30s, with choreography by Francis Patrelle and live music arranged by Jerome Korman. The world premiere of Three Paces Down, choreographed by Magali Johnston-Viens and inspired by the poems of Djuna Barnes, Renée Vivien, Nancy Cunard and Gertrude Stein, and a painting by Pablo Picasso, is set in the literary salon culture of 1920s Paris. In Gilbert and Sullivan, The Ballet! "Act 3, Pinafore." Francis Patrelle shows his mastery of the story ballet with this send-up of both the Gilbert and Sullivan classic and the artists' struggles to get it on the stage. Eighteen dancers, live piano, and four singers make this an event not to be missed.
Run time: 90 minutes with intermission. Saturday tickets include an afterparty with the artists.
About Francis Patrelle
A graduate of Juilliard, Mr. Patrelle’s flair for dramatic ballet has been seen everywhere from Tokyo and Rome to Toronto, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and most often in New York City. He created roles for the greatest dancers of our age and also choreographed extensively for opera, including the Santa Fe Opera, Vienna State Opera, and Willie Stark for the Houston Grand Opera, which was performed at the Kennedy Center and televised on PBS’s Great Performances.
Mr. Patrelle made considerable contributions to classical ballet. During his ten years as resident choreographer for the Albany Berkshire Ballet, he created two full-length classics: Romeo and Juliet and Firebird. As principal choreographer at the St. Louis Ballet he created a full-length Swan Lake. And with Dances Patrelle he created Macbeth (’95), followed by The Yorkville Nutcracker (’96).
In 1988, Dances Patrelle was founded as an outlet for Mr. Patrelle’s distinctive gift for choreography. He created dozens of ballets for the company, including his beloved American songbook series: American Dreamer, Rhapsody In Blue, Jazz/Fools, Come Rain/Come Shine, Glad to be Unhappy, and POP!
Mr. Patrelle was likewise known as a gifted and passionate teacher. In addition to many years at Manhattan School of Music, he served on the faculty at Ballet Academy East. He also choreographed works for students at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, Cuyahoga Valley Youth Ballet, Juilliard Dance Ensemble, and The Ballet School of Stamford. He considers mentoring an essential facet of the art form.
In 1999, Mr. Patrelle was presented the Arts Recognition Tribute Award (ARTY) by the Long Island Arts Council for outstanding contributions to arts in the region. Mr. Patrelle has received three Dance Magazine Foundation grants for new ballets. In 2008, he was honored with the prestigious Choo San Goh Award for Choreography in support of his ballet Is That All There Is?
For dP’s 20th Anniversary, Mr. Patrelle created a new murder mystery ballet, Murder at the Masque: The Casebook of Edgar Allan Poe, with a commissioned score by Patrick Soluri, and an original story by award winning novelist Justin Allen. In 2011, Mr. Patrelle’s newest evening-length work, Gilbert and Sullivan, The Ballet!, premiered, featuring Music Director Warren Helms and the co-creation of the original story by Justin Allen. In 2013, dP was named Resident company of Kaatsbaan International Dance Center. In 2019, Mr. Patrelle premiered The American Dream, It’s Only Business, and in 2021, Separation, a video ballet with Abi Stafford and Ask La Cour.
Mr. Patrelle was the recipient of the first ever Playing Field Award for Choreographic Achievement from Kaatsbaan International Dance Center and was presented with a Proclamation of Excellence in Artistic Achievement by District 5 Council Member Ben Kallos.
About the Company
Dances Patrelle (dP) is a dynamic professional ballet company celebrating its 35th season! dP presents two annual seasons in New York – the timeless holiday tradition, The Yorkville Nutcracker, and a spring repertory season featuring world premieres and classic Patrelle favorites. Mr. Patrelle’s body of work includes over 50 original ballets choreographed for Dances Patrelle, and spans an incredibly wide range of styles, from his beloved American Songbook collection to such contemporary classics as Madame X, Macbeth and Rhapsody in Blue. Heralded by Lynn Garafola in Dance Magazine as a choreographer with “a personal vision…classical because it is rooted in metaphor and symbolic language [and] populist because of its legibility and broad cultural resonance.” Patrelle has also cultivated a long-time collaboration with composer Patrick Soluri, commissioning four original scores including 2009's Murder at the Masque for dP's 20th Anniversary. Known for attracting the great talent of each generation, Dances Patrelle is pleased to count ballet stars such as Marcelo Gomes, Jenifer Ringer, Donald Williams, Lourdes Lopez, and Cynthia Gregory among its dancers. For 26 seasons, Dances Patrelle has tapped into the human experience, connecting intimately with the audience and continuously reinventing dramatic dance. In 2013, the company was named the resident ballet company of the Kaatsbaan International Dance Center.
“In Francis Patrelle’s ballets, the characters come alive. His choreography is full of heart and soul.” – Cynthia Gregory, Prima Ballerina
