Performance Transcript: Opening Remarks for American Ballet Theatre's Giselle

Sat, Apr 19

Hello everyone, and welcome to Northrop. My name is Kristen Brogdon. I’m Northrop’s director of artistic and community programs, and I’m delighted to welcome you. 

I’d like to begin this welcome with gratitude that this performance is proudly supported by PNC Bank, RBC Wealth Management, and our hospitality partner, Graduate Hotel Minneapolis, and is made possible by the voters of Minnesota - give yourselves a round of applause! - through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund. Thank you sponsors, and thank you voters. 

Northrop is part of a public university, rooted in Minnesota, and we are very proud of and thankful for our place here. We also acknowledge that this place that many of us call home has a complex and layered history, and not everyone has been served and treated equally throughout that history. Northrop is located on contemporary, traditional, and ancestral homelands of Dakota people. We seek to show up in support of Native and Indigenous Artists, and land acknowledgement is one of the ways we educate our campus and community about our relationships with the land and each other. We are also responding to our history by welcoming EVERYONE to Northrop. You belong here, whether you’re here for the first time or have been attending for decades.

Let’s have a show of hands - how many of you are here at Northrop for the first time? Welcome. Regulars, thank you for your ongoing support, and please help us welcome our newcomers tonight. 

We’re thrilled to welcome American Ballet Theater back to Northrop, with live orchestra by STRINGenius. This is their first time in our theater since 2019, and some of you may have joined us out at the Arboretum for their special performances in the summer of 2021. We have one intermission in this program, and we encourage you to visit with each other. You can get some refreshments or check in at our Northrop table in the lobby. We also have a sensory lounge off the lobby if you or anyone with you needs a break at any time. This production does include fog, haze, and strobing effects. Northrop and ABT respectfully request no photo or video, and now is a great time to silence any devices in your bags or pockets that make noise. 

ABT marks the last dance event of our season, but hopefully you’ve seen the news that we announced our 2025-26 season last week! Subscriptions are available now for a gorgeous variety of dance and music; you just have to pick 3 events to be a subscriber. Tickets for individual performances will go on sale in June.

We are grateful to our Encore Gala event sponsors: PNC Bank, RBC Wealth Management, Graduate Hotel Minneapolis, and Grand Jete. Following the performance, we invite our Encore Gala guests to exit the theater to your left and proceed to the west side of the first floor.

Today you are in for a real treat, and we are so happy you’ve chosen to spend your afternoon with us. Please join me in a warm Northrop welcome for American Ballet Theatre in Giselle!