Boston Ballet: Fall Experience 2026

Boston Ballet opens its new season with a program that is far more playful and provocative than the usual fall curtain-raiser. The evening starts with selections from Stravinsky's The Firebird, performed live by the Boston Ballet Orchestra, before shifting gears with Alexander Ekman's Cacti, a slyly funny work that pokes at our tendency to overanalyze art. Sixteen dancers, a live orchestra and string quartet turn the stage into a rhythmic playground, with platforms becoming percussion instruments under the dancers' feet. Then comes Akram Khan's Vertical Road (Reimagined) 2023, a more elemental piece inspired by Sufi traditions and the writings of Rumi. The contrast is what makes this program worth seeing: one half mischievous and self-aware, the other immersive and searching. For anyone who thinks ballet means tutus and storybook plots, this is a useful reset. Runs September 10 to 20 at Citizens Opera House.