Dear Friends and Family of the Alabama Ballet,

This performance is built around music I’ve carried with me for a long time. Music I’ve always wanted to create to or have returned to at different moments in my life. Every piece of music holds memory: where you were, who you were with, and who you were becoming.

For me, music has always been deeply personal. One song in this program holds a particularly special place in my heart. It’s a song my wife and I used to sing to our oldest daughter when she was a baby. That feeling of intimacy, comfort, and the quiet passing of time is something I wanted to live inside while creating this work.

This performance isn’t about nostalgia alone. It’s about the way music marks our lives and how movement can carry those memories forward.

Music has always helped me remember different versions of myself. These pieces feel like memories you can step into. The songs travel across decades, but the emotions remain timeless. It’s less about when a song was released and more about what it awakens in you when you hear it.

Each work is tied to a feeling I’ve held onto for years, love, longing, joy, stillness. Choreography is how I give those feelings a physical life.

The idea of a “mixtape” has been with me since I was young. I used to sit by my stereo with a blank cassette, waiting for the right song to come on the radio so I could record it at just the right moment. I’d blend genres and artists that to me, somehow felt right side by side.

Those tapes went everywhere with me, car rides to school, long family trips, vacations. I gave them to friends as gifts: small collections of sound that captured a moment in time.

This performance feels like a live mixtape. Different textures. Different energies. Different emotional landscapes. All stitched together by memory.

My hope is that while these dances are deeply personal to me, they also leave space for you, for your memories, your moments, and the music that has shaped your life.

Thank you for being here and for sharing this evening with us.

Christopher Stuart,

Artistic Director

Artistic Director | Christopher Stuart

Executive Director | Jenny Mann

Choreography | Christopher Stuart

Music | Universal Music Group, ASCAP, BMI, SESAC

Production Manager | David Page

Costume Director | Wendy Gamble

Company & Production Stage Manager | Joelle Tucker

Technical Stage Manager | Liam McElroy

The taking of photographs or use of any video or audio recording devices is strictly prohibited.

Sponsored by:

Have You Ever Seen the Rain
Music by Creedence Clearwater Revival

When the Right One Comes Along
Music by Striking Matches

String Quartet No. 5
Music by Ezio Bosso
Performed by the Turin String Quartet

Crazy Little Thing Called Love
Music by Queen

Hold You in My Arms
Written by Sarah Siskind
Performed by Hayden Panettiere and Jonathan Jackson

Arms of a Woman
Music by Amos Lee

Beyond
Performed by Leon Bridges

Universal Music Group, ASCAP, BMI, SESAC

Jenny Mann

Executive Director

Dr. Jenny Mann, Executive Director, joined the Alabama Ballet in November of 2024. Before joining AB, she served as President and Executive Director of the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, Executive Director of Tuscaloosa Symphony, and enjoyed a 15-year career with The University of Alabama as Associate Professor of Bassoon, Chamber Music, and Arts Administration. A passionate educator and administrator, Jenny has over 30 years of experience in teaching and developing education/outreach programs. She specializes in fundraising, organizational capacity building, and collaborative engagement. In addition to her career in leadership, Jenny also published the text, "Teaching Woodwinds: Bassoon" with Mountain Peak Music and three recordings with the renowned Cavell Trio. Jenny holds a BMA from Baylor with a PK-12 Teaching Certification, MM and DMA degrees from The University of Texas at Austin. 

Chloe Bowen
PR & Marketing Manager

Michele Swader
Office Manager

Margaret Wendorf
Finance Manager

Natalie Hunt
Director of Operations, Alabama Ballet School

Isabella Cowles, ARAD RTS
Director of Curriculum, Alabama Ballet School