COLUMBUS, Ohio — BalletMet is debuting a new collection of short ballets this weekend.
The collection, "Asian Voices," will be at the Riffe Center's Davidson Theatre in downtown Columbus until March 23. It features pieces from three Asian choreographers.
BalletMet artistic director Edwaard Liang presents his piece, "Seasons," as choreographer Yue Yin's "Timeless Tide" has its world premiere.
The third short ballet of the production is "Flight of Fancy" by choreographer Ma Cong.
"[It was] inspired by the positivity and the joy and freshness," explained Cong.
That inspiration came to Cong on a trip to California.
"I was looking at the scenery and the mountains and smelling that crisp air, fresh air - looking at the green grass and the hummingbirds and I was so inspired with all this very joyful positivity, colorful and freshness," Cong said.
After putting on a piece of music that brought everything together, Cong decided to create a piece of work to "uplift the human spirit."
Cong was born and raised in the southwest part of China and spent years as a dancer throughout the country before coming to the United States.
"My choreography has a strong influence of Chinese folkdance and classical dance element," Cong said.
Cong described the "interesting and wonderful marriage" of eastern culture and western culture as one of his main influences.
"Just like me, I'm married to my husband who's American and I've found this cultural mix very unique and very inspiring, and I always learn something from him," Cong said.
Cong works to bring all cultures together "through this language of dance" and hopes that people will find that "the arts is all united in a way that everybody can enjoy and be inspired and can be uplifted."
In addition to the opening of "Asian Voices," BalletMet announced this week the lineup for their 2024-2025.
Starting in October, BalletMet kicks of its 47th season with the return of "Dracula," followed by the beloved "Nutcracker" in December.
The new year sees the arrival of "West Side Story" and "Sleeping Beauty" and "Black Voices" finishes out the season next June.
For showtimes and ticket information and for more on BalletMet's 24-25 season, visit: https://www.balletmet.org/.