“With a moving score featuring composers John Adams, Oliver Davis, and Ezio Bosso, lovely classical choreography, and superb performances by the cast, I expect Golden Sessions will offer a fresh and uplifting experience for Ballet 5:8 fans and newbies alike, regardless of their interest in Lewis or literature.” - Executive Director Emeritus Amy Sanderson

Ballet 5:8 celebrates its new facility in Orland Park and the many community members who made it possible with a weekend of intimate black box in-studio performances and the Chicagoland premiere of Butterfly. Artistic Director Julianna Rubio Slager’s newest work recreates the gripping scenes of the WWII Terezin ghetto, where residents created masterful works of art in defiance of their oppressors. The performances will also feature Slager’s playful Brothers & Sisters exploring the beauty and contrast of men and women. 

ORLAND PARK, IL – Ballet 5:8 has moved its nationally-recognized professional performing company and dance education center from its seven-year home in Frankfort, IL, to a newly remodeled 12,000 square foot building in Orland Park, IL. The new location, just minutes from I-80 and LaGrange Road and a 35-minute drive from downtown Chicago, is a step up from the company’s previous home and includes five state of the art studios and a dedicated cross-training studio, plus added space and amenities for the company’s 13 professional dancers, expanding local student population, and administrative staff. The new and larger studios will allow Ballet 5:8 to continue to increase the size of its professional performing company - which was recently called the “suburbs’ best kept dance secret” by See Chicago Dance Editor Lauren Warnecke - over time. The new building will also foster continued growth for Ballet 5:8’s education programs for all ages which include hundreds of after-school classes, adult dance and fitness classes, monthly workshops for special needs dancers, and a range of intensives and conferences that attract students, choreographers and dance education leaders from across the country during the summer months. A ribbon cutting ceremony at Ballet 5:8’s new location, facilitated by the Orland Park Chamber of Commerce, will be held on Thursday, February 21 from 5-7pm and is open to the public.