Universal Ballet Company Special Gala for the 100th Anniversary of the Late President Moon Sun-myung's Birth

At Universal Art Center on the 8th-9th of next month

[Asia Economy Reporter Byunghee Park] The Universal Ballet Company will present a 'Special Gala' performance commemorating the 100th anniversary of the birth of its founder, President Sun Myung Moon, on July 8-9 at the Universal Art Center in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul.

The Universal Ballet Company plans to showcase a diverse program featuring highlights from classical masterpieces and contemporary ballet by inviting top principal dancers from the company as well as ballet stars active on international stages.

Performers include former San Francisco Ballet principal dancer Lucia Lacarra; Matthew Golding, former principal dancer of the Royal Ballet in the UK, who left a deep impression on Korean audiences as Albrecht in the 2018 production of "Giselle"; Stuttgart Ballet principal dancers Kang Hyo-jung and Jason Reilly; and Choi Young-gyu, principal dancer of the Dutch National Ballet, who partnered with principal dancer Hong Hyang-gi in the 2017 "The Nutcracker." Alongside them, top principal dancers of the Universal Ballet such as Kang Mi-sun, Konstantin Novoselov, Son Yu-hee, Lee Hyun-jun, Choi Ji-won, and Lee Dong-tak will showcase their brilliant skills and performances.

Lucia Lacarra and Matthew Golding will headline the Special Gala with the Swan Pas de Deux from "Swan Lake" and the sensuous modern piece "Finding Light," which will be presented for the first time in Korea. "Finding Light" is scheduled as the third piece in the first act, while the Swan Pas de Deux will open the second act.

Kang Hyo-jung and Jason Reilly will perform the remorseful pas de deux from John Cranko's "Onegin" and the balcony pas de deux from "Romeo and Juliet." Hong Hyang-gi and Choi Young-gyu will present the grand pas de deux from "Don Quixote" and "Venice Carnival."

Kang Mi-sun and Lee Hyun-jun will perform the reunion pas de deux from the Universal Ballet's signature work "Ballet Chunhyang." Konstantin Novoselov and Son Yu-hee, the first foreigners to receive the Danseur Noble award from the Korean Ballet Association, will perform the grand pas de deux from "The Sleeping Beauty."

Universal Ballet principal dancer Lee Dong-tak and soloist Choi Ji-won will introduce "RUTH, Ricordi Per Due," a new piece. "RUTH, Ricordi Per Due" is the final neoclassical work by Gerald Arpino, a pioneer of modern dance and founder of the Joffrey Ballet in the United States.

The late President Sun Myung Moon founded the Universal Ballet Company in 1984, Korea's first private professional ballet company, at a time when ballet was underdeveloped in Korea, thereby elevating the status of Korean ballet and contributing to its popularization.

Marking its 36th anniversary, the Universal Ballet Company's "Special Gala" holds significance in reflecting on the noble intentions of its founder, inheriting his legacy, and pledging a progressive future. The "Universal Corps," nurtured through the Universal Ballet Company, Sunhwa Arts School, Universal Ballet Academy, and Washington Kirov Ballet Academy, will fill the stage for this performance.

Director Moon Hoon-sook stated, "This Special Gala is a tribute performance honoring the founder's birth, planned to create an opportunity to move toward a better future based on the solid foundation of the past 35 years. Going forward, the Universal Ballet Company will do its utmost to uphold the founder's noble legacy in culture and arts and become the finest ballet company that elevates Korean culture and arts."