For the second year in a row, the New York City Ballet (NYCB) season at Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) will be one short week long. While I feel a bit cheated, I still plan on attending as much as I can while they are here.

One performance I’m especially excited about seeing is NYCB Soloist and choreographer, Justin Peck‘s new piece, Everywhere We Go. So far I’ve loved all of his pieces, and I’ve seen a short video clip of Everywhere We Go, and it looks to be just as amazing as rest of his dances. Justin will be the guest speaker at the pre-performance talk Wednesday night, so I’m hoping to gain some further insights into this new work.

On a sad note, Principal Dancer, Wendy Whelan, who has danced with the company since 1986, will retire this fall. I’ve had the pleasure of watching this incredible dancer perform numerous times. I’m disappointed that this will be her last season at SPAC.

Besides watching the company perform several times, I will be attending two classes, taught by NYCB dancer Andrew Scordato. He is a wonderful teacher, and getting the chance to watch him demonstrate the steps is always a treat. I might even steal some of his combinations to share with my students.

I would encourage all of you to take a look at Ballet Beat, a newsletter written and published by members of For Art’s Sake. This organization was founded in 1998 to raise public awareness of NYCB’s Saratoga Springs season. It’s a great resource to learn more about the company and handy guide to the NYCB SPAC season.