Manassas, VA – On April 27, 2025, at a Hylton Performing Arts Center in Manassas, VA, a great dance performance took place!! <Epic Music Plays>. It was a Virginia National Ballet dance journey, delivered in a way that would make any Star Wars fan proud!! It was a Virginia National Ballet dance trilogy that started in the middle, went to the beginning, and had a powerful ending that so many in attendance could relate to. Let the ballet adventure begin.
The night’s story started in the middle with Tango Nights. The score was composed by Argentinian composer, Astor Piazzolla, with the dance choreographed by Rafik Hegab. This piece took us back to early 1900s Argentina.
I had the opportunity to see the premiere of this production in 2022 when I was still somewhat new to the ballet world. I fell in love with it then and my feelings have not changed. It was a whimsical look into the seduction of the tango with a strong ballet influence thrown in. It served as a lesson in how hormones can get us in trouble.
The dancers did a superb job of conveying the demeanors of their characters, whether it was the suave and debonair ladies man chasing the hard to get; the awkward and clumsy pursuing the outgoing and bubbly; or just the loving couple. In life, courtship is but a dance and Virginia National captured the art flawlessly.
The old saying goes, when the cats are away, the mice will play. That can be said about the plot twist in Tango Nights. Upon the departure of the ladies, the ‘sexy lady’ entered, grabbing the attention of the men. What had once been a situation where the men were content with the relationships at hand now turned into a competition for the heart… well, maybe not the heart… of the sexy.
The power of seduction won and several pas de deuxs later had convinced each that she was theirs while giving her heart to no one.
The battle was short lived as the ladies of their initial pursuits returned and the sexy departed. The cycle was clear, the pursuit, the gain, the stray, and now we were in for groveling… this is always fun to see when you are not the one in the doghouse. This was such a fun production.
Tango Nights Gallery
The next stop on the journey took us back to the beginning, with a performance to Moonlight Sonata, composed in the early 1800s by Ludwig van Beethoven. As the name implies, there are 3 movements, all tied to phases of the moon, crescent, half, and full. Rafik choreographed the emotion felt in the dance to the cosmic lunar phases.
The first movement was an unknown journey to the light. The three pairs of dancers were gracefully moving forward toward the unknown. Maybe I should not be drawing parallels to the earlier, but in a way this aligned with Tango Nights, the beginning, searching for the light out of darkness.
In the second movement, with more light, there was a great celebration. The 10 dancers expressed their joy in a fun celebration. Again, the parallel to Tango Nights was somewhat surreal but there. The celebration of finding the right light.
The final movement was chaos. The entire company took the stage and in a well organized and graceful depiction of lunacy (speaking of the moon). Do I need to mention the tie to the Tango?
This premiere of a Hegab original was an example of of where music and motion can create a wonderful story. In a way, this piece surreally explained the plot of Tango Nights, metaphorically using the phases of the moon. I loved it!!
Moonlight Sonata Gallery
Returning from the moon, we are taken to the end of our story in true Star Wars fashion… Bohemian Rhapsody. It was released by Queen in 1975 and represented the perfect time to set up the end of the journey. The musical selection also aligned with the phases of the moon and the order of the Tango as there was much more choreographed chaos in this piece leading to a triumphant ending.
Bohemian Rhapsody, like the other two, is a Hegab original, this one from 2017. It starts with the namesake song followed by several other timeless Queen tunes. This performance brought back memories of my younger days, a time when we all felt that we were the champions.
The dancers brought the lyrics and music to life. I am sure every song had a different meaning to each in attendance, but for me it could not have been a better ending to the night as many of the songs played had a large influence on my interest in music.
It is hard to deny the power of “Bohemian Rhapsody” and the dancers of Virginia National did a wonderful job of adding the visual element to each song.
For those who do not know, “Who Wants to Live Forever” was one of the main songs from the cult classic, “Highlander“, about men, cursed with immortality… living forever. It is powerful as it mourns the loss of a loved one while life goes on. In the movie, the song depicts the downside of immortality in that the loss of those you love is inevitable. We must all go on… but is the pain worth it? The words and the dance worked together to convey the feelings those we have lost.
“We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions” brought me back to 8th grade northern Wisconsin. After a heartbreaking loss in the St. Joseph’s Jr. High basketball tournament, these 2 songs were played over and over (with several rewinds of the mix tape) on the hour long, that seemed like days, bus ride back home. While the pieces on this night had nothing to do with junior high basketball, these two songs conveyed the message that we need to rise to the challenge, victory is sweet and what defines victory may be different for everyone. Out of chaos there can be victory. We define what the victory is. Tango Nights ended with reconciliation, Bohemian Rhapsody ended with victory, whatever that victory may be. Awesomeness!
The other Queen pieces in this final act included, “Killer Queen” (a very unique Queen song) and “Don’t Try So Hard“. All in all it was the wonderful mix of Queen songs to bring the night to a climactic conclusion.
Bohemian Rhapsody Gallery
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And that was it, a ballet trilogy, spanning 175 years of musical bliss had come to an end. The theme for the night seemed to be the search, the celebration, the distractions, and the victory, starting in the middle, going to the roots, and finishing up with something so many could relate to. No, it was not Star Wars, there were no Jedi and May the 4th was still 8 days away, but it was a great adventure in dance and music that is sure to appeal to all senses.
Virginia National Ballet will be presenting this show at the AILEY CITIGROUP THEATRE IN NYC on Saturday, May 17, 2025.
Cast and Directors
Elysabeth Muscat – Founder and Managing Director
Rafik Hegab – Founder, Artistic Director, and Choreographer
Tango Nights
Livan Gonzalez, Sierra Stipetich
Nicole Ramirez, Leandro de Almeida
Alexa Glomp, Ervin Vallecillo
Jessica Schmitt
Mikayla Anderson
Moonlight
1st Movement
Livan Gonzalez, Sierra Stipetich, Ervin Vallecillo, Leandro de Almeida, Beatris Khamidullaeva, Anastasia Shafer.
2nd Movement
Mikayla Anderson, Aiva Berrigan, Alexa Glomp, Marjorie French, Sydney Gondringer, Carissa Puppo, Nicole Ramirez, Jessica Schmitt, Riko Saito, Emily Zatorski
3rd Movement
Whole cast
Bohemian Rhapsody
Bohemian Rhapsody
Leandro de Almeida
Mikayla Anderson, Sydney Gondringer, Carissa Puppo, Nicole Ramirez, Jessica Schmitt, Riko Saito, Emily Zatorski, Jessica Schmitt, Beatris Khamidullaeva, Anastasia Shafer, Sierra Stipetich
Killer Queen
Alexa Glomp, Ervin Vallecillo
Mikayla Anderson, Sydney Gondringer, Carissa Puppo, Jessica Schmitt, Ervin Vallecillo,
Who Wants to Live Forever
Nicole Ramirez, Livan Gonzalez
Ervin Vallecillo & Beatris Khamidullaeva, Leandro de Almeida & Anastasia Shafer
We Will Rock You
Leandro de Almeida, Aiva Berrigan, Beatris Khamidullaeva, Alexa Glomp, Sydney Gondringer, Carissa Puppo, Riko Saito, Jessica Schmitt, Anastasia Shafer, Sierra Stipetich, Ervin Vallecillo, Emily Zatorski
Don’t Try So Hard
Alexa Glomp, Livan Gonzalez, Nicole Ramirez, Jessica Schmitt, Sierra Stipetich
We Are the Champions
Leandro de Almeida, Mikayla Anderson, Aiva Berrigan, Alexa Glomp, Sydney Gondringer, Livan Gonzalez, Beatris Khamidullaeva, Nicole Ramirez, Carissa Puppo, Anastasia Shafer, Jessica Schmitt, Sierra Stipetich, Riko Saito, Emily Zatorski
