Night Birds, An Intimate Celebration of Art + Dance

The Cathedral and Ventana Ballet flock together again for the immersive presentation of Night Birds, an avian-themed, 360-degree performance featuring nine dancers, three cellists, and vibrant art from the atxGALS collective. Guests are invited to enjoy the intimate, one-hour performance accompanied by a curated, complimentary bar experience that offers bird-themed signature cocktails and other refreshments from local distilleries and breweries. In their fourth year collaborating, these local, women- and minority-owned organizations will fly together for six performances.

This year’s programming will include a limited-seating VIP Opening Night Event, featuring anintimate, post-show talk-back with the artists and musicians.

For the first time, the Night Birds run will include two children’s interactive matinee performances, where the dancers and musicians will invite the young guests to participate in their flock.

Night Birds will also feature the work of local young female and non-binary artists with a Night Birds Youth Art Show. Selected applicants under the age of 18 will create bird-themed artwork to display in the gallery during the run of the shows.

The program presents several dances, each named after a familiar (or unfamiliar) bird of the night, with the movement intended to represent "the essence and beauty of the animal — paying homage to its nature, disposition, and symbolism," according to AJ Garcia-Rameau, the director of Ventana Ballet and choreographer of Night Birds.

This year’s program will feature two new birds, debuting brand new choreography by Garcia-Rameau. Guests will also delight in experiencing some of the previous years' birds as well, including the popular Nightingales, who will soar again to Beethoven’s coveted “Moonlight Sonata,” played by three cellos to an original arrangement by Cory Blais.

Musicians: Cory Blais, Rylie Harrod-Corral, Geoff Manyin

Dancers: AJ Garcia-Rameau, Navaji David Nava, Julia Beros, Ellie Coleman, Caroline Jones, Josh Martinez, Mia Moi, Penelope Morejon Molina, Taylor Woolums

Friday, August 2nd
-- 7:30pm - VIP Opening Night Reception, Evening-Length Show, & Curated Post-Show Q&A (Doors open at 7pm)

Saturday, August 3rd
-- 2:30pm - Kids Interactive Matinee Show (Doors open at 2pm)
-- 5:30pm - Evening-Length Show (Doors open at 5pm)
-- 7:30pm - Evening-Length Show (Doors open at 7pm)

Sunday, August 4th
-- 2:30pm - Kids Interactive Matinee Show (Doors open at 2pm)
-- 5:30pm - Evening-Length Show (Doors open at 5pm)

* Doors open 30 minutes before showtime listed above.

* The performance run-time is approximately 1 hour and includes a 10-minute intermission.

* Please note that the recommended ages for the evening-length performances are 12 & up; however, those guests under age 12 are more than welcome to attend if they are comfortable being quite & courteous for the entire duration of the 1-hour show. For all guests under the age of 12, we have curated a unique and interactive Kids Show which will run at 2:30pm on both Saturday and Sunday.

“Ventana Ballet is noted for the immersive nature of their shows, and bird-watchers won't have to go scouting around the Cathedral to spy these creatures. Everyone will be seated around a central stage space, though the dancers are likely to take flight through and around the crowd as they channel our feathered friends.” —Robert Faires of the Austin Chronicle

The Cathedral is a beautiful 1930's refurbished church in East Austin. Created by the Founder of atxGALS , a local women art collective whose mission is to create more exposure for women artists, The Cathedral showcases a diverse collection of art by the top-rated collective year round.

Ventana Ballet is a professional dance company based in Austin, TX, specializing in contemporary ballet dance performance. The word ventana, meaning window, embodies the company’s organizational mission and vision, seeking to provide inspiration, accessibility, opportunity, and technical structure.

Please note that tickets are nonrefundable.

Photography by Farid Zarrinabadi

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

The Cathedral, 2403 East 16th street, Austin, United States