By Janelle Gelfand
The Cincinnati Enquirer

It was an evening of grace and beauty Friday night, when the Cincinnati Ballet took center stage with Erich Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops.

The Pops' salute to the ballet was a mini dance lesson through some of the great classics of the repertoire, from Tchaikovsky's Waltz from Swan Lake to the Grand pas de deux from Giselle. It was pure and lovely to watch. But mainly, it was a showcase of the growing depth of the ballet company under artistic director Victoria Morgan.

Chopin's "Grand Valse Brilliante" (Les Sylphides) had a kind of ethereal beauty, with the corps de ballet executing Mikhail Fokine's choreography in white tutus. Cesare Pugni's Pas de Quatre was all about precision and delicacy.

That said, the most entertaining moments were the flashier offerings: "Russian Sailor's Dance" from Gliere's The Red Poppy (choreographed by Devon Carney) and a dance from Manuel de Falla's La Vida Breve. The latter was full of Spanish color, both in the bold, lively choreography (by Morgan) and the brilliant costumes.

The company's soloists provided many of the evening's highlights. Principal dancers Kristi Capps and Dmitri Trubchanov shone in the Grand Pas de Deux from Don Quixote. Their collaboration was as stunning for its effortless quality as it was for Trubchanov's arresting leaps and Capps' fresh exuberance.

Soloists Mishic Marie Corn and Anthony Krutzkamp made an expressive duo in the Grand pas de deux from Giselle (kudos to violist Marna Street).

And senior soloist Cheryl Sullivan was a radiant rose among pastel flowers in a magical "Waltz of the Flowers" (The Nutcracker).

The Venture Dancers and students of the Otto M. Budig Academy, directed by Daniel Simmons, performed impressively in waltzes from Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty and an exotic "Sabre Dance."

Kunzel filled in with orchestral gems, including Rachmaninoff's Vocalise, warmly played by concertmaster Timothy Lees.

The performance repeats at 7 p.m. today. Phone: 381-3300.