This story was originally published by ArtsATL.
Atlanta Ballet’s 2025-26 season will include three full-length story ballets — “Frida,” based on the life of artist Frida Kahlo, “The Sleeping Beauty” and “The Nutcracker” — along with six shorter works in two mixed bills, in September 2025 and April 2026.
Two of the ballets, artistic director Gennadi Nedvigin explained recently, are works that he performed during his 19 seasons as a dancer with San Francisco Ballet: the production of Petipa’s “The Sleeping Beauty,” created by Helgi Tómasson, former San Francisco Ballet artistic director, and George Balanchine’s sexually charged “Prodigal Son.”
Credit: Photo courtesy of American Ballet Theatre/©2016 Rosalie O’Connor Photography
Credit: Photo courtesy of American Ballet Theatre/©2016 Rosalie O’Connor Photography
Balanchine created “Prodigal Son” in 1929 for Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes to music by Sergei Prokofiev. It’s based on the biblical parable of sin and redemption. A young man rebels against his father, leaves home and is seduced by a beautiful siren whose followers rob him. He crawls home broken and remorseful but is welcomed with open arms by his father.
The male lead is a coveted one. Jerome Robbins performed it for the New York City Ballet premiere in 1950. Mikhail Baryshnikov danced it in 1979 during his brief stint with that company. Nedvigin first performed it in the 1990s with the San Francisco Ballet. The work hasn’t been seen in Atlanta ballet since 1989.
“After performing ‘Prodigal Son,’ Helgi promoted me to principal dancer, so it has special meaning to me,” Nedvigin says. He is reviving the iconic work for Atlanta Ballet as part of a Balanchine-inspired mixed bill.
Credit: Photo by Kim Kenney
Credit: Photo by Kim Kenney
Also on that program is the Atlanta Ballet premiere of Balanchine’s “Emeralds,” a lyrical ballet set to music by Gabriel Fauré that is part of Mr. B’s full-length “Jewels,” first performed in 1967. Rounding out the program is “In Creases” by New York City Ballet resident choreographer Justin Peck, set to a piano score by Philip Glass.
“This is a beautiful program because it features two ballets from different times in Balanchine’s career, along with a contemporary piece. The works complement one another,” Nedvigin says. This program will open the company’s new season Sept. 12-14 at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre.
“The Sleeping Beauty” will get a two-weekend run Feb. 6-14, 2026. Nedvigin performed several roles in that ballet in San Francisco: the pas de six, the famed Bluebird solo and, later in his career, the Prince.
Credit: Photo courtesy of Arizona Ballet/Rosalie O'Connor
Credit: Photo courtesy of Arizona Ballet/Rosalie O'Connor
Nedvigin was still with San Francisco Ballet when the company performed Christopher Wheeldon’s “Within the Golden Hour,” a swirling, contemporary work set to Vivaldi that is new to Atlanta Ballet’s repertoire. Nedvigin never danced in it but remembers the challenged partnering. That ballet will share the April 3-5, 2026, program with new works by Yuri Possokhov and choreographer-in-residence Claudia Schreier.
Closing the season in May 2026 will be the North American premiere of Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s “Frida.” The full-length ballet explores the life and loves of the acclaimed Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. It was created for the Dutch National Ballet in 2020 and performed most recently by the Hong Kong Ballet. The costumes and sets are striking, in bold colors inspired by Kahlo’s paintings and the traditional Mexican styles she favored.
“Frida” is the second story ballet by Ochoa that Nedvigin has brought to Atlanta. The first was “Coco Chanel: A Life of a Fashion Icon,” an audience favorite when it premiered in Atlanta in 2024. “Annabelle brings stories to life so wonderfully; she has found her niche,” Nedvigin says, “and I was very moved when I saw ‘Frida.’” He felt a particular affinity with the subject matter having seen Kahlo’s house in Mexico and museum exhibits of her work.
The company has scheduled a three-week run of Possokhov’s critically acclaimed “The Nutcracker” from Dec. 6-27, 2025. This high-tech production comes across as a festive celebration, but “the dancers don’t hesitate to remind me that Yuri’s ‘Nutcracker’ is difficult,” Nedvigin says. “It takes a lot of time in rehearsal to bring the dancers to a comfort level so that the production looks effortless.”
Since becoming artistic director in 2016, his first time directing a company, Nedvigin has developed a technically strong ensemble by nurturing existing company members and bringing in accomplished dancers from around the world.
His programs for the 2025-26 season are testament to the kind of ballets his dancers are now capable of performing at a high level. Their strength and cohesiveness allow him to be more adventurous in his choice of repertory.
“It’s like being a curator in a museum,” he says. “You want to bring in pieces that have existed for many centuries and put them together with new works so you can see the progression of the art. Every program is different — educational as well as entertaining.”
::
Gillian Anne Renault is ArtsATL’s Senior Editor for Dance and Art+Design and has been an ArtsATL contributor since 2012. She has covered dance for the Los Angeles Daily News, Herald Examiner and Ballet News and on radio stations such as KCRW, the NPR affiliate in Santa Monica, California. Many years ago, she was awarded an NEA Fellowship to attend American Dance Festival’s Dance Criticism program.
Credit: ArtsATL
Credit: ArtsATL
MEET OUR PARTNER
ArtsATL (artsatl.org) is a nonprofit organization that plays a critical role in educating and informing audiences about metro Atlanta’s arts and culture. ArtsATL, founded in 2009, helps build a sustainable arts community contributing to the economic and cultural health of the city.
If you have any questions about this partnership or others, please contact Senior Manager of Partnerships Nicole Williams at nicole.williams@ajc.com.
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
