Atlantic City Ballet
VENTNOR – The Atlantic City Ballet’s international dancers will perform “Sleeping Beauty” Sunday at Caesar’s Atlantic City. Among the cast members will be Ventnor’s own Sleeping Beauty, Mayor Beth Holtzman, who is partnered with Mortimer Spreng for a performance-long presence on stage.
“I will be on stage with the other ‘celebrities’ for the entire performance,” Holtzman said. “We perform some gracious, formal dance in all three acts, wear beautiful costumes, and do some acting when we ooh and ah the baby and pantomime chatting with each other while the real dancers do their thing.”
Ventnor Mayor Beth Maccagnano Holtzman.
As with all ballets, there are no speaking roles.
“Can you image me on a stage without being able to talk?” Holtzman said. “We even get put to sleep when Princess Aurora pricks her finger and goes into a deep sleep. That’s ironic because I never sleep.”
The ballet includes other special guests, including medical columnist Dr. Nina Radcliff who is paired with former Atlantic City Solicitor Tom Forkin, and At the Shore editor Pam Dolak who is partnered with meterologist “NorEaster Nick” Pittman.
Holtzman, who had back surgery last year, said the dancing is not strenuous and although she will be on stage for the entire ballet, it’s only one performance.
Atlantic City Ballet Artistic Director Phyllis Papa contacted her on social media inviting her to be in the ballet, she said.
“She thought it would be a good way to bring awareness to the ballet troupe. Actually, she’s my cousin,” Holtzman said. “Her father and my grandmother were cousins.”
“We always want to involve the residents of Atlantic City whenever we can and what better way than to have a few well-known members of this great community join us on stage,” Papa said in a press release. “I’m thrilled that they all found time in their busy schedules to make this happen.”
Audiences will get swept away into the world of kings, queens, fairy godmothers and storybook creatures as the tale of Sleeping Beauty comes to life. Set to Tchaikovsky’s familiar score and combined with Papa’s stunning choreography, Sleeping Beauty is a timeless classic that can be enjoyed by the entire family.
Holtzman said having celebrity participants has already generated ticket sales from people who would not normally attend a ballet.
“Experiencing ballet is like viewing art. The dancers are in a league of their own,” Holtzman said. “This was not one of my bucket list of things to do, but it is a chance of a lifetime. How many people actually get to say they performed in a professional ballet. It makes me feel good in my soul to be able to do it.”
Holtzman has participated in three rehearsals so far. One of the best things about her participation is that she has met some interesting people, such as Pittman and Dolak, she said.
“He’s so young. I had no idea he is only 26,” she said.
Papa, who was an acclaimed international ballerina, founded the ballet in 1982. The Atlantic City Ballet is comprised of professional dancers from around the world who have earned national acclaim for their technical expertise and exuberant stage presence.
Although their home base is at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, the ballet has performed in theaters all along the East Coast and across the country. Its repertoire of original works includes such classics as “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “Swan Lake,” but Papa is most known for her innovative works, such as “Dracula,” “Romeo and Juliet,” and her full-length “Carmen.”
Sleeping Beauty will be performed 4 p.m. Sunday April 28 at Circus Maximus Theater in Caesars Hotel-Atlantic City.
Tickets $45 for adults; $20 for children and students under 17. Seniors over 65 get a 15% discount. Atlantic City residents get a special rate of $15.
For tickets go to acballet.org.
