NEWS

ballet / 2022-2023 Season
Ballett X Schwerin - Germany
TO BE CONTINUED
choreography by Xenia Wiest
music by Patrick Soluri
costumes by Melanie Jane Frost

TO BE CONTINUED was the first collaboration between choreographer Xenia Wiest and Patrick Soluri as a commission for Berlin Staatsballett. Since its premiere in 2010 it’s received dozens of performances to great acclaim and won the Biarritz International Competition. It’s latest production will be part of a triple bill called “Dancing Souls” by Ballett X in Schwerin, Germany where Xenia is also in her second season as the Ballet Director!

BALLETT X - Schwerin, Germany
• performances 2022: Oct. 28, Nov 26 ,Dec 4, 16,
• performances 2023: Jan. 26, Feb. 2, 8, March 18, April 4

for tickets & info visit: Mecklenburgisches Staatstheate

ballet / 2022-2203 Season
Ballett X Schwerin - Germany
NACHT OHNE MORGEN (Night Without Morning)
choreography by Xenia Wiest
music by Patrick Soluri, Philip Glass, Saint-Saens
costumes by Melanie Jane Frost

Following a successful premiere during it’s first season, NACHT OHIME MORNING has been programmed for a second season with four new dates in the 2022 and 2023 season.

• performances 2022: Dec. 15, 26
• performances 2023: Jan. 1, Feb. 12

for tickets & info visit: Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater

Aria from EMBEDDED featured in Aria Access Project by ALT - launched Feb 2022!

American Lyric Theater is offering free downloadable sheet music from contemporary operas to use in auditions & classrooms as part of their “Aria Access Project.”

One of the aria’s featured is from EMBEDDED, the Edgar Allen Poe opera, by Patrick Soluri and Deborah Brevoort. All composers & libretist are receiving compensation, so everyone wins! For more info & arias visit - www.altnyc.org/aap
* PRESS: story in OperaWire

The ballet TO BE CONTINUED will be featured in the 31st annual ROMANIAN NATIONAL THEATRE FESTIVAL, which runs from November 6-14, 2021. It is online this year, due to the pandemic. The ballet was filmed as the 1st place winner (Grand Prix) in the Concours de jeunes chorégraphes de Biarritz in April 2016. TO BE CONTINUED was originally created by the collaborative team of Xenia Wiest (choreographer), Patrick Soluri (music), Melanie Jane Frost (costumes), and commissioned by Staatsballett Berlin in 2009 and premiered in January 2010 at Komische Oper Berlin where it was performed 18 times over two seasons.

[ direct link - “To Be Continued” at ROMANIAN NATIONAL THEATRE FESTIVAL 2021 ]

“Standing ovation for the ballet premiere NACHT OHNE MORGEN” - NDR (Germany)
pub. sept. 26, 2021

Following the successful premiere of the new ballet “Nacht Ohne Morgen” in Schwerin, German public radio & TV broadcaster NDR published a rave review (excerpt / translated):

“There was a standing ovation for Xenia Wiest and her company. Applause and cheers surged for minutes and didn't want to end. The applause was finally broken off… the new chief choreographer (Xenia Wiest) would introduce her dancers there. Most of the audience took advantage of the opportunity, because the curiosity about this ensemble was enormous after the premiere and there was also an urgent need to exchange ideas about the piece…. The opportunity arose to present the entire new ballet ensemble, which had already performed in great homogeneity. The dissolution of the old company had previously caused a stir in Schwerin. From an artistic point of view, however, this new beginning is - as is now evident - a gigantic success.”

• for complete article (in German): www.ndr.de/kultur/buehne/Nacht-ohne-Morgen

• for tickets & info visit: Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater

ballet premiere / September 25, 2021
Ballett X Schwerin - Germany
NACHT OHNE MORGEN (Night Without Morning)
choreography by Xenia Wiest
music by Patrick Soluri, Philip Glass, Saint-Saens
costumes by Melanie Jane Frost

We’re thrilled that choreographer Xenia Wiest not only become Ballet Director of Ballett X Schwerin in Germany, but collaborated with Patrick on a new work for the seasons’ opening gala on September 25th (2021). Xenia and Patrick have already produced two award wining works for Staatsballett Berlin and Ballet de l'Opéra National de Bordeaux, and are excited to to continue working together during this new chapter in Xenia’s career!

• performances 2021: Sept. 25, Sept. 28, Oct. 8, Oct. 10, Oct. 17, Oct. 22, Nov. 3, Dec. 2, Dec. 12, Dec. 18

• performances 2022: Jan. 20, Jan. 27, Feb. 4

• for tickets & info visit: Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater

• further reading: Xenia Wiest becomes Ballet Director in Schwerin (local media / in German)

SEPARATION - premieres online May 20, 2021
Longtime collaborator and choreographer, Francis Patrelle, teamed up with noted New York City Ballet principal dancers, Ask la Cour and Abi Stafford, to co-choreograph a new short work to be featured on Dances Patrelle’s online season.

The ballet was created on zoom throughout the pandemic, and finished in person a few days before filming in NYC. Patrick created music for this haunting work, his sixth collaboration with Patrelle, and second with Abi & Ask, who danced lead roles in the 2019 production of MADAME X.

This work is part of the Dances Patrelle online season, and will premiere on Youtube on May 20th at 7pm. The program is c. 40 minutes long, with other works by Daniel Ulbricht (NYCB), Ask la Cour, and Ariel T. Rose.

* Free / $25 suggested donation - May 20, 2021 at 7pm [direct link to watch on YouTube]

ENTIRE DISCOGRAPHY RE-RELEASED (Feb. 2021)
Throughout the pandemic, we’ve taken on the large project of consolidating and re-releasing our entire discography, and are happy to report that as of February 2021 every recording is now available for download and streaming through most online stores worldwide! This includes three albums of ballet scores, and two singles on Apple Music, iTunes, Spotify, Amazon Music, Youtube Music, Deezer, TikTok, Slacker Radio, Shazam, and dozens more.

DALLAS VOICE - "Polishing Nobbs” (pub. April 26, 2019)
Article about the May 8th showcase  of ALBERT NOBBS at Fort Worth Opera, with interviews by Deborah Brevoort and Patrick Soluri.

"Most people are probably familiar with the story of Albert Nobbs through seeing the 2011 film starring Glenn Close. But when librettist Deborah Brevoort was presented with the idea of turning the story into an opera, she took a bold approach: She skipped referring to the movie version, and instead sourced her story from the novella by George Moore. She found everything in the book necessary for an ideal opera, although she still faced one obstacle: language.

“The book is very different from the movie,” she says. “It’s a story about a woman who had no options but to live as a man to thrive. She has this awakening, but she doesn’t have the words for what is happening.”

Set in 19th century Ireland, the plot revolves around Albert — born a woman, she reinvents her identify as a man in order to survive the times that she couldn’t as a woman on her own..."

[ link to full article ]

[ TICKETS TO SHOWCASE - Fort Worth Opera ]

 MADAME X returns for third production NYC in April 12-14, 2019!
—> for tickets and more info visit www.dancespatrelle.org // Facebook invite Page <—

Please join us for the exciting 20th anniversary and 3rd production of the ballet "MADAME X" - with music by Patrick Soluri and choreography by Francis Patrelle! Based on the infamous painting by John Singer Sargent, the ballet (and other Patrelle works) will have four performances April 12-14, 2019 in New York City at New York Live Arts by Dances Patrelle. The cast features two principal dancers from New York City Ballet, Abi Stafford and Ask La Cour.

• Friday, April 12 at 7pm

• Saturday, April 13th at 2pm

• Saturday, April 13th at 7 PM

• Sunday, April 14th at 12 noon
  

  TICKETS 
  * $25 Early Bird - w/promo code "Patrick" (ends Tues. April 2nd)
  * $35 Tickets - w/promo code "Patrick" (starts April 3rd)
  * $50 Full Price Tickets & at Box Office

(opera) ALBERT NOBBS wins 2019 Frontiers competition at Fort Worth Opera!
INFO & TICKETS: public showcase will be May 8th or 9th in Fort Worth, Texas

Fort Worth Opera will present a showcase of winners from the 2019 Frontiers Competition on May 8th and 9th (2019) in Forth Worth, Texas. This includes ALBERT NOBBS, a new full-length opera currently in development by composer Patrick Soluri and librettist Deborah Brevoort. It was presented as part of OPERA America's "New Works Forum," at Symphony Space in January 2018. The first 20 minutes were initially commissioned as finalists in the 2018 Pelicotti Opera Prize. The upcoming showcase will be open to the public and presented as a piano reduction of the first three scenes (about 30 min.). Patrick & Deborah’s first opera EMBEDDED also won the first Frontiers Competition in 2013.

(ballet) JUST BEFORE NOW performs again this season by Bordeaux National Ballet
INFO & TICKETS: for April 11, 2019 performance // for Oct 9, 2018 performance

The ballet "JUST BEFORE NOW" by the collaborative team of Xenia Wiest (choreographer), Patrick Soluri (music), and Melanie Jane Frost (costumes), will receive additional performances this season by Ballet de l'Opéra National de Bordeaux On October 9, 2018 and April 11, 2019.  The work received 8 sold-out performances in spring 2017 at the historical Grand Theatre de Bordeaux (built in 1780). The work was commissioned as winner of the Grande Prixe / 1st place prize of the Concours de jeunes chorégraphes de Biarritzin with their previous work, "TO BE CONTINUED," originally commissioned and performed by Staatsballett Berlin. 

(opera) 10 min operas perform again in Singapore - March 15, 2019
Several of Mr Soluri's short comic operas (10 min or less) have been performed by L'arietta Singapore over the last few years. On March 15, 2019 "Figaro's Last Hangover" and "Figaro & The Zombie Apocalypse" were performed. The companies first performances of both works were in November 2016, plus the 1min opera haikus "Tragedy of Count Alfredo von Nibelungen" at the Shangri-La Island Ballroom on July 20, 2016 and at NightFest on August 19, 2016.

(opera & dance) New project with Moth Poetic Circus
A new collaboration is in the works with MOTH POETIC CIRCUS based in Denver, Colorado. We can't say much yet, but this exciting  new project is slated to premiere in Spring 2020 at the Denver Performing Arts Center in their main 2,200 seat opera house... more info coming soon!

(opera) Orchestra reduction of HANSEL & GRETEL for Opera Saratoga
Opera Saratoga commissioned me to create an orchestral reduction of the opera HANSEL & GRETEL by Humperdinck for their upcoming production. The work is being reduced from traditional large scale operatic orchestral forces down to just 20 instruments in order to fit in their theaters small pit! Performances will be July 5-14, 2019. For more info - www.operasaratoga.org/hansel-and-gretel

2018 news

• (opera) ALBERT NOBBS showcased by ALT during Opera America's New Works Forum
  Sunday, Jan 14, 2018 - Merkin Concert Hall (NYC)
  American Lyric Theater presented a concert performance and showcase of ALBERT NOBBS, a new full-length opera currently in development by composer Patrick Soluri and librettist Deborah Brevoort. It was presented by as part of OPERA America's "New Works Forum," a mini conference focusing on new opera. The showcase was open to the public and presented as a piano reduction of the first three scenes (about 30 min.), with chorus and soloists. An aria and choral intro were added to the original 20 min segment that was commissioned as finalists in the 2018 Pelicotti Opera Prize.
  
  

• (ballet) Sold-Out World Premier at Bordeaux National Ballet (France)
  March 30 to April 7, 2017 in Grand Theatre de Bordeaux
  The newest ballet "JUST BEFORE NOW" by the collaborative team of Xenia Wiest (choreographer), Patrick Soluri (music), and Melanie Jane Frost (costumes), was premiered March 30, 2017 by Ballet de l'Opéra National de Bordeaux. It received 8 sold-out performances last season at the historical and gorgeous Grand Theatre de Bordeaux (built in 1780). The work was commissioned as winner of the Grande Prixe / 1st place prize of the Concours de jeunes chorégraphes de Biarritzin with their previous work, "TO BE CONTINUED," originally commissioned and performed by Staatsballett Berlin.
  
  

• (ballet) TO BE CONTINUED wins Grande Prixe in internationl competition.
  The ballet TO BE CONTINUED won 1st place in the Concours de jeunes chorégraphes de Biarritz in April 2016. The prize is a commission for a new piece for Ballet de l’Opéra National de Bordeaux. TO BE CONTINUED was originally created by the collaborative team of Xenia Wiest (choreographer), Patrick Soluri (music), Melanie Jane Frost (costumes), and commissioned by Staatsballett Berlin in 2009 and premiered in January 2010 at Komische Oper Berlin where it was performed 18 times over two seasons.
  
  

• (opera) ALBERT NOBBS a finalist in the 2018 Pellicciotti Opera Composition Prize.
  Deborah Brevoort (librettist) and Patrick Soluri (composer) won the first round in the 2018 Pellicciotti Opera Composition Prize for their proposed full-length opera based on the acclaimed novel ALBERT NOBBS. For the second and final round of the competition, they were commissioned to write 20 minutes of the opera which was workshopped in September 2016 alongside projects of the three other teams of finalists, including esteemed colleagues Tom Cipullo (winner), Anthony Davis, and Lori Laitman. An archival recording of the workshop performance is available and we are looking for co-commissioners and producing partners to complete this work