What: The Houston Ballet’s Onstage Dinner
Where: Wortham Theater Center
The scoop: The Houston Ballet celebrated its 50th anniversary season with a special Onstage Dinner. Some 200 guests joined honoree Lynn Wyatt for Stanton Welch’s Giselle before joining company dancers onstage for the Onstage Dinner.
The performance paid tribute to the creation of Houston Ballet 50 years ago. In 1967, Pepita’s Giselle was performed by a troupe of dancers in Houston. (It was after this performance that the city decided to support a company of its own.)
During intermission, guests regaled in a tribute to Wyatt, created by Richard Flowers of the Events Company. The montage showcased Wyatt’s longstanding relationship to the ballet. At the conclusion of the performance, just before the grand curtain reveal, guests gathered in the orchestra for a presentation by chairman Jesse H. Jones II, artistic director Stanton Welch, and Wyatt.
Scenes from Giselle were staged to invite guests to an intimate dining experience. Upstage, a string quartet was nestled between Giselle’s house and the Duke’s lodge. Centerpieces by Bergner and Johnson added to the glamorous scene onstage.
Dinner was prepared by Jackson and Company. Guests were met with a lobster parfait comprised of lobster, avocado, cucumber, mango, and mint. The main course included herb crusted medallions of beef tenderloin with a vine Zinfandel sauce accompanied by bundles of haricots verts and sautéed spinach in a red ripe tomato.
For dessert, guests enjoyed a “pear royale” consisting of a champagne poached pear stuffed with walnuts and sundried fruits baked in a crips puff pastry and served with local wildflower honey and honey gelato and crème anglaise.
The event raised more than $230,000 for Houston Ballet, marking it as the most successful Onstage Dinner the Ballet has ever seen.
Who: Stanton Welch, Jim Nelson, Shawn Stephens and Jim Jordan, Allison Thacker, Melza and Ted Barr, Christina Stith, Anne and Albert Chao, Richard Flowers, Jo and Jim Furr, Mayor Sylvester Turner, Jesse H. Jones II and Terry Wayne Jones, Letty Loya, Kelley and Steven Lubanko, Beth Muecke, Judy and Jim Nicklos, Duyen and Marc Nguyen, Sara and James Parr, Alicia Smith, Leigh and Reggie Smith, Ann Trammell, Stephanie and Frank Tsuru, and Margaret Alkek Williams.
Jim Nelson, Jesse (Jay) H. Jones II, Lynn Wyatt, and Stanton Welch.
