San Francisco Ballet — World Premiere

San Francisco Ballet is ending April with *Mere Mortals*, Aszure Barton’s full-length work at the War Memorial Opera House, running April 24 through May 3. (sfballet.org 1) (sfballet.org 2) The company says composer Floating Points, the stage name of Sam Shepherd, is performing live with the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra at every performance in this run. Martin West conducts the orchestra. (sfballet.org) Sunday, April 26, has a 2 p.m. performance on the company calendar. Additional shows are listed for April 28, 29 and 30 at 7:30 p.m., then May 1 at 8 p.m., May 2 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., and May 3 at 2 p.m. (sfballet.org) *Mere Mortals* is not a new title for the company this week. San Francisco Ballet says the ballet had its world premiere in January 2024 and sold out multiple performances in its first run. (sfballet.org) What made that premiere notable inside the company is the commission itself. San Francisco Ballet says Tamara Rojo commissioned *Mere Mortals* to open her inaugural season, making it the company’s first full-length commission from a female choreographer. (sfballet.org) The story pulls from Greek myth, but the company frames it in present-day terms. Barton and Floating Points rework Pandora and Prometheus through questions about technology and artificial intelligence rather than as a period retelling. (sfballet.org) San Francisco Ballet says the score uses the Buchla synthesizer, an instrument invented in the Bay Area in 1963. The onstage design also includes three mobile LED panels by Hamill Industries, with some visuals created using artificial intelligence as an artistic tool. (sfballet.org) The company has linked the ballet’s return to the city where it first opened. In its announcement, San Francisco Ballet said the work premiered in “the epicenter of technology” as debate over artificial intelligence moved from industry circles into public life. (sfballet.org) This spring run is also a bridge to a larger tour path. San Francisco Ballet says *Mere Mortals* will receive its European premiere later this year at the Edinburgh International Festival and London’s Sadler’s Wells. (sfballet.org) For now, the immediate story is local and concrete: a San Francisco commission that opened in 2024 is back on the Opera House stage through May 3, with live music at every performance. (sfballet.org 1) (sfballet.org 2)