By: Aiyana Moore ~Staff Writer~

The Xavier University Concert Choir, in coordination with the Cincinnati Ballet, will produce the composer’s final piece for one weekend only

Tragic moments give way to hope in the Cincinnati Ballet’s newest performance set to
Mozart’s “Requiem Mass in D Minor,” accompanied by the Xavier University Concert Choir.

“We are singing it all completely in Latin and we’re doing the entirety of the Requiem with the
ballet,” sophomore choir member Stephanie Ambrose said. Mozart’s “Requiem,” originally
written for a funeral, was the composer’s last piece and was left incomplete upon his death in 1791, a fact that is emphasized by the way that the ballet’s reflection on mortality. The ballet, which will be performed on March 20 and 21, will consist of several acts, each representing a different tragedy. The Cincinnati Ballet website identifies the performance as as “datharsis through dance.”

“Everything is so dramatic, there’s a ton of crescendos and it’s just really powerful music,”
Ambrose said. “We have put so much effort into this work, and we have been working on it almost non-stop since December.” Maestro Carmon DeLeone has been working with the Concert Choir to prepare for the upcoming event.

“He really transformed our choir,” Ambrose said. “At a musical standpoint, it’s going to be pretty powerful and hopefully we’re going to showcase a lot of emotion with the way that we’re
singing.” Although Ambrose and the rest of the choir are excited to perform “Requiem” with the Cincinnati Ballet, this is not the first performance of the show. The Cincinnati Ballet, along with the Concert Choir, performed the same show in 2010 with great success.

“It is such a beautiful production,” Terry Honebrink, the community relations and group sales
manager for Cincinnati Ballet, said on WVXU radio in relation to both the 2010 and upcoming
performances of “Requiem.” “It’s poignant and moving and emotional. I guarantee if you come,
your heart will be touched in many, many ways and you’ll leave the theater feeling very uplifted.” Mozart’s “Requiem” will have performances at 8 p.m. on March 20 and at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. on March 21 at the Aronoff Center for the Arts. Ticket prices start at $32. Xavier students can get a discount by visiting www. cballet.org.

Contact Dr. Richard Schnipke for more details. “We are going to put 110 percent into this performance,” Ambrose said. “I know it’s going to be spectacular.”