The Auditorium Theatre will bring seven local and international dance companies to its stage as part of its 2017–18 season, announced this morning. Also on tap for the lineup: conversations with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, documentarian Ken Burns and writer David Sedaris, as well as the Auditorium Theatre concert debut of opera singer Kathleen Battle.
The International Dance Series includes Chinese-born choreographer and MacArthur “genius” Shen Wei’s troupe, Shen Wei Dance Arts, performing repertory pieces Folding and Rite of Spring (September 23 and 24); Monaco’s Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo, performing Jean-Christophe Maillot’s acclaimed La Belle (March 3 and 4); the annual visit by New York City’s Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (March 7–11); and Ballet Nacional de Cuba, returning to Chicago for the first time in 15 years with Don Quixote (May 18–20).
Under the umbrella of “The People’s Choice,” the Auditorium will host conversations with three public intellectuals of varying stripes in the fall. On September 7, Burns and his directing and producing partner Lynn Novick will preview their new 10-part series The Vietnam War, which will air on WTTW later that month. The notorious R.B.G. will appear on September 11, in conversation with Judge Ann Claire Williams of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. And Sedaris, the bestselling author of Naked, Me Talk Pretty One Day and other essay collections, will speak on November 1.
In the theater’s American Music Series, Grammy winner Battle will perform Underground Railroad—A Spiritual Journey, a program of spiritual and traditional songs such as “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” and “Wade in the Water” (September 30). Ella & Lena—The Ladies and Their Music is a cabaret performance celebrating the centennials of Ella Fitzgerald and Lena Horne, both born in 1917 (November 17). And Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah returns for the 13th consecutive year (January 12–14).
The “Made in Chicago” dance series features return performances by Ensemble Español Spanish Dance Theater (October 6), Hubbard Street Dance Chicago (March 23 and 24) and Giordano Dance Chicago (June 9). And on November 12, the Auditorium will mark the 50th anniversary of its restoration and reopening with A Golden Celebration of Dance, a one-night-only concert of mixed repertory from companies to be announced.
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