The artistry of fine dining pairs with the artfulness of dance in our 5th annual feast for the senses. This intimate evening offers surprises for every palate with four original short dance works, each served with a generous side of style, emotion, talent and Memphis' top culinary creations.

We are pleased to welcome as our Guest Host this year, Martha Foose, the 2009 James Beard award winner for Best American Cookbook, Screen Doors and Sweet Tea. Martha was the dessert chef for 2007 and 2008 Connections: Food events.

Also new this year, we'd like to thank Horacio Vicente, Head Winemaker at Vina San Estaban, Chile, for pairing their award-winning In Situ wines with all of our courses. Horacio, who trained in France and California, runs the family estate which boasts premium hillside and riverside vineyards. In Situ wines are named after the ancient archaeological site on the vineyard property.

The Chefs & Menu

First Course / Appetizers: Karen B. Carrier of The Beauty Shop / Do Sushi / Noodle Doodle Do / Mollie Fontaine Lounge / Another Roadside Attraction Catering and Tim Barker of the Beauty Shop Restaurant. Karen and Tim have been making Memphians "Eat Good, Look Good" at their eclectic Midtown establishment. Karen has been written up in more Food magazines that one can count, and with her creative background, she always has a new story to share with each one. 

• Herb Saint Cioppino ~ Clara’s Heirloom Tomato Herb Broth, Blue Crab, Spiced Shrimp and Scallops
• Charred Calamari and Halibut, Sweet Corn, Basil, Fennel Fronds and Candied Citrus Zest
• Herbaceous Salad ~ Torn Greens, Sherry Vinegar Aioli, Black Grapes, Dill, Parsley, Mint, Kirby’s Rustic Bread with Dark Chocolate, Benton’s Bacon and Sea Salt
• Pepper Mustard Crusted Hawaiian Tuna Loin ~ Lemon Oil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Watermelon Garnish
• McIntosh and Fuji Apples with Manchego and Marcona Almonds
• Krispy Rice Chicken with Tomato Mustard Jam
• Flo’s Marinated Cucumbers with Garlic & Dill
• KBC’s Dusted Onion Curls with Spiced Aioli
• Heirloom Tomatoes, Shallots, Pink Sea Salt, Brazil Nut Dust, Flat Bread, Cane Vinegar, Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Shiitakes ~ Maple Butter roasted and Tamari Crisps

Second Course: Andy Ticer and Michael Hudman from Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen. From their restaurant on Brookhaven Circle, Andy and Michael have been giving Memphis "a fresh perspective on traditional Italian." The chefs are big supporters of the Memphis Farmers Market, participate in the Farmers Market Dinner series and are participants with the nonprofit Project Green Fork, a collaboration of Memphis-owned restaurants that work hard to reduce their environmental impact.

• Rabbit Confit Raviolo, Sous Vide Rabbit Tenderloin, Foie Gras Torchon

Entrée: Kelly English of Restaurant Iris, recently named by Food & Wine as one of the “top new chefs” in America for 2009. Kelly's restaurant was recently named by Memphis Magazine readers this year as Memphis’ Best New Restaurant, Most Romantic Restaurant and Best Service. Since coming to Memphis, this top chef has been busy promoting the use of locally grown ingredients through the Memphis Farmers Market, and is often found cooking demos at the weekly Saturday event.

• Saddle of Lamb “Vin Cotto” with Creole Andouille Flan and Truffled Gumbo

Dessert: Jenny Dempsey of the Mollie Fontaine Lounge. Jenny has helped make Mollie Fontaine's the late night hot spot with her fabulous creations. Nestled in the heart of Victorian Village, Mollie's (as she's known to her friends) is open each night and stays open, "until the spirits go to sleep."

• Cake Love ~ Lemon Blueberry Cake with Chantilly Cream, Mexican Chocolate Cake and Triple Coconut Cake, and Mini Ice Cream Cones

The Choreographers

Artistic Director Dorothy Gunther Pugh usually likes the chefs to plan their menu which she then shares with the choreographers. However, this year, she's shaking things up and allowing the choreographers to pick music and design a new dance work that has certain types of sculptural qualities. The chefs will then choose the food based on the work and address the sculptural quality by incorporating it into their food choice and layout. It will definitely be a sight to see.

We are so please to welcome back to Ballet Memphis, Garrett Ammon. Garrett is currently the artistic director at Ballet Nouveau Colorado, but spent some quality time with us this summer working with the dancers to choreograph his piece for Connection: Food, and using New Orleans fave Dr. John as his musical inspiration. Garrett's work is always a crowd favorite and we look forward to sharing it with you over a fabulous meal in October. 

Garrett Ammon was named Artistic Director of Ballet Nouveau Colorado in 2007. Over the past two seasons, he has created seven world premieres, which have all received the highest critical acclaim, and in 2009, BNC was named 25 to Watch by Dance Magazine. Garrett is an international award winning dancemaker and recipient of Tennessee Arts Commission’s 2007 Individual Artist Fellowship for Choreography. Garrett was born in Blythe, California and found his way to dance through choral music and theatre. In 1996, Garrett joined Houston Ballet for two seasons. He went on to dance with Oregon Ballet Theatre before joining Ballet Memphis in 1999. Throughout his career, Garrett performed works by a diverse range of choreographers including Trey McIntyre, Julia Adam, Donald Byrd, Lila York, Mark Godden, Bebe Miller, Septime Webre and Ben Stevenson. Garrett was also a founding member of the acclaimed Trey McIntyre Project and founder of interiorworks, a dancer-produced show at Ballet Memphis that benefits the Artists’ Resource Fund.  Garrett has created a large repertoire of work for Ballet Memphis over the past ten years including Walk the Line, Short Trip Home, Address Unknown, Smile and Mediate.

New to working with Ballet Memphis this year is Czech choreographer Petr Zahradnicek. His musical choice, a Polish composer, is not only lovely and inspiring, but will definitely whet your appetite for his work in our February 2010 Abundance series. 

Petr Zahradnicek is a native of the Czech Republic. After graduating from the Brno Dance Conservatoire, he joined the National Theater in Prague, where he especially enjoyed performing works by Jiri Kilian, George Balanchine and Alvin Ailey. While in Prague, he was also involved in pantomime and varieté theaters. In 1996, Petr moved to Germany and was honored to work with Mario Schröder, an up and coming German choreographer. In 2001, Petr decided to move to New York City where he enjoyed the many styles of dance. Petr then went on to dance with the Colorado Ballet and the Milwaukee Ballet. While with the Milwaukee Ballet, Petr found his love for choreography. Since joining the company in 2003, he has created many works for the Milwaukee Ballet, Milwaukee Ballet 2 and Milwaukee Ballet School. He also choreographed Carmina Burana for the Master Singers of Milwaukee. In 2007, Petr won a grant from the New York Choreographic Institute, an affiliate of the New York City Ballet, to create a new work for the Milwaukee Ballet.

Former company member Nicole Corea returns from New York to bring us an original new work like only she can. Nicole choreographed for both our Momentum and Interiorworks series last year to much acclaim. Nicole is a two-time Princess Grace Award nominee and a graduate of The Juilliard School. She has danced with New York's Ballet Hispanico, Elisa Monte Dance, Metropolitan Opera Ballet, Nilas Martins Dance, Pier Group and Thomas/Ortiz. This season, Nicole will be choreographing an original new work for this season's Connections: Body & Soul , in addition to her opening piece for this year's appetizer course of Connections: Food.

The final choreographer of the evening is our own Choreographic Associate and company member, Steven McMahon. If you haven't seen Steven's work on stage, it's a must this season. His Connections: Food piece will be a prelude to his restaging of Wizard of Oz for The Orpheum stage the first weekend of November. Steven brought us many wonderful new works last season, including a wonderfully original Carnival of the Animals and his first full-length ballet, Cinderella, which performed to sold out crowds. For this Connections: Food premiere, Steven has choreographed a solo he calls "Anniversary" especially for Stephanie Mei Hom to celebrate her 10th year with Ballet Memphis. He also worked with National Ornamental Metal Museum metalsmith Mary Catherine Floyd to design a one-of-a-kind metal mesh tutu to wear for the performance. 

Mary Catherine has come to the Museum by way of her hometown, Raleigh, NC and Bucyrus, Missouri. It was Mary Catherine's time in Missouri under the direction of Charlie and Marian McKinney that introduced her to metalworking and the Metals Museum community. Prior to working for the McKinneys, she completed a BFA at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC, concentrating in fibers arts. Mary Catherine's focus as a resident artist is the marriage of her knowledge and personal experiences in metal and fiber arts.

Tickets

Tickets for Connections: Food are extremely limited. Single tickets are $300, couples are $500 and a table of eight is available for $2000. Ample free parking is available in the adjacent lot. Tickets may be purchased by contacting Roger Johnson in the Development Office at 901-737-7322.