"Sports Spectacular makes a statement worth noting: what ballet dancers do with their bodies in the theater is easily as exciting, awe-inspiring and athletic as anything you'll ever see in a stadium."
--Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch

"This ballet and [dancer Jeff] Wolfe's dancing epitomize BalletMet Columbus in its 30th year. The Company is not only unusually versatile, hardworking and 'together' as an organization. It is made up of fine dancers who are much more than technicians: they're performers."
--Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch

"BalletMet's new 30x30 program amounts to an embarrassment of riches, as the choreographers invited to make short new works for the Company responded by creating a treasure chest of intriguing, often innovative ballets. From new work in Russian-styled classical ballet to jazz dance and everything in between, the program unveils exciting forays into many dance styles and serves as a reminder to how deep the talent in dance in this country is right now."
--Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch

"...30x30 reminds audiences that ballet is dancing and dancing is, at its most basic level, fun...If anything, this impressive compilation returned to the forefront the memorable ecstasy of moving to sounds. And that's a wonderful thing."
--John Ross, Columbus Alive

"The overall quality of the dancing was impressive Friday...What I'd go back to see again is the easy confidence and excitement [the dancers] brought to the new work on the program."
--Elaine Guregian, Akron Beacon Journal

"The Sleeping Beauty is to a ballet company what a Shakespeare play is to theater. BalletMet has achieved the quality in its classical dancing and the depth in its company ranks to pull it off."
--Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch

"Creativity runs rampant at BalletMet Columbus' current program, Rendezvous at the Riffe...The dancing is so complex, so dense with steps and layers of meaning that one viewing--and one review--are not adequate."
---Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch

"...BalletMet's The Nutcracker delivered all the enchantment and charm one could hope for...It blends accessibility, humor, tradition and great dancing--the stuff cherished Nutcracker memories are made of."
--Steve Sucato, The Buffalo News

“The spacious 250-seat ‘black box’ theater puts BalletMet in a very exclusive club among professional dance troupes worldwide...It’s another smart move for this well-managed troupe.”
--Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch

"Not every regional ballet company can commission pieces from such internationally known choreographers. But since it was transformed from a civic ballet into a professional troupe in 1978, BalletMet has placed an accent on new choreography. The company's openness to new currents is refreshing...Hisham Omardien and Sonia Welker's pas de deux in Gazebo Dances was a mesmerizing tour de force. Passion surfaces dramatically amid the swoons, arabesques and lifts when Ms. Welker, wonderful in her projection, twists back into a public facade--the arm-in-arm walk."
--Anna Kisselgoff, The New York Times

"What impresses most about this company lies in their obvious commitment, not only to technique and challenging choreography, but to what these elements—when accompanied by the right combination of talented performers and complementary costumes and music—have the potential to portray." "Most compelling about Stanton Welch’s Play, and indeed about the BalletMet itself, is that there is no proverbial ‘weak link.’ Instead, one witnesses an ensemble in which the strength of each and every character stands out, creating a unity within the very chaos suggested by the piece." "Had I one word to describe my impression of the BalletMet Columbus upon seeing their New York City debut at The Joyce Theater, I would choose ‘intelligent.’ That there was never a dull a moment during the three half-hour ballets performed by the company was due not only to innovative choreographers and the dancers’ technical strength but in BalletMet’s extraordinary aptitude for storytelling."
--Jennifer E. Wesnousky, ExploreDance.com

"In an exultant display of versatility, BalletMet Columbus made its Joyce Theater debut in singular style. The company displayed confidence in the friendly environment. In Deanna Carter’s Colores de Alma, the partnering is complicated, yet the dancers never lost the sweep and grace of the movement. With the supercharged songs of Moby in Play, the dance captured the music’s energy and frazzled nerves and quickly caught the audience in its grasp."
--Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch

“It’s hard to believe that this Ohio-based company, which has a solid 26-year history and an impressive record of commissioning 63 original works, has never been seen in Manhattan until now." "In Deanna Carter’s Colores de Alma, the men are quietly assertive, and the women revel in the curves and sculptural flow of their movement…. In Stanton Welch’s Play, the dancers gave it their all, never drawing attention to themselves, but meeting the choreographer’s demands with powerfully focused and committed performances."
--Susan Reiter, DanceView Times

“By the end of the program, BalletMet Columbus had won us over…rising above the dreaded stigma of ‘regionalism’ to national caliber…. The earnest, unassuming performances of its 28 dancers won New York’s heart.”
--Gus Solomons Jr., Gay City News

"In the world premiere of Dwight Rhoden’s Carmina Burana, the cast of 21 dancers depicts voracious lovers, gluttonous monks and evil spirits.…Wildly energizing the stage, the dancers wrap themselves around low benches, rush downstage to dip their hands in a symbolic trough of water and run upstage to climb a prickly wall of steel rods that sometimes changes shapes. Fiery ensemble dances develop into a violent orgy that ultimately resolves into a joyous celebration…. The dancers gave it their all."
--Wilma Salisbury, Cleveland Plain Dealer

"While not a story ballet, Evolution is far more than just steps. The choreography is dramatic and demands an ongoing, quickly changing expressive dimension...Of course, acting is something BalletMet does well. Even at the first performance, these dancers commanded the stage, convincingly selling each movement; the level of confidence and polish should continue from here."
--Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch

"Among the offerings of central Ohio arts groups, nothing tops BalletMet Columbus’ annual presentation of The Nutcracker….BalletMet must be among a fine few American companies in regard to the acting abilities of its dancers."
--Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch

"The best classical dance company in Ohio."
-Wilma Salisbury, Cleveland Plain Dealer

"Timing is of the essence in Harrison McEldowney’s Group Therapy, for both the comic touches and the inventive lifts, tumbles and other intricate moves. The company danced the work as if they'd all graduated from years of analysis."
--Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch

"The Columbus company has developed into Ohio's most innovative ballet troupe."
--Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch

""'Charm' may be undervalued currency in today's world, but not at BalletMet. The company opened its 25th anniversary season last night with an utterly charming new production of Cinderella, choreographed and staged by Artistic Director Gerard Charles, who easily creates the grand gesture, the sweeping corps de ballet and the big finish. But he is not above adding a few things funky, such as the unexpected arrival of a clock striking midnight--in reality, 12 academy students waving signs with hours painted on them...The best news of all: whether in a tender pas de deux or a comic trio, everything is executed with class. The production had a finish to it from every standpoint."
--Barbara Zuck, The Columbus Dispatch