Latest Events

On December 18, Sherene Melania attended UNESCO’s International Dance Council's (CID) 50th General Assembly. As the President of UNESCO's CID's California Chapter, she was honored the represent the United States. Sherene spoke about the importance of the arts in uplifting and uniting people, as well as the value of cross-cultural exchange. Sherene was honored to represent California and meet so many fabulous artists, representing 23 countries. 

Presidio Dance Theatre was honored to perform for APEC 2023, at the Moscone Center, along with SF Jazz and the SF Conservatory. Many thanks to Mayor London Breed and our Chief of Protocol, Maryam Muduroglu, for inviting PDT to represent San Francisco. We are grateful to our Artistic Advisor, Lily Samii, and our Community Partner, Bay Area Dance School, for their support and making the event possible. We remain tremendously proud of our young artists, who were hailed by the U.S. Department of State for an “amazing performance, reflecting the diversity of San Francisco!”

On May 18, as part of Presidio Dance Theatre’s 25th Anniversary Celebration, we presented the world premiere of Unbreakable, honoring the women of Iran. The performance raised awareness of the ongoing revolution and atrocities faced by the people of Iran, while raising funds for the Center for Human Rights in Iran. 

Unbreakable is a powerful 30-minute social justice dance work, amplifying the voices of the women and girls of Iran in their fight for freedom and justice, until light overcomes darkness. It combines contemporary dance with Sherene Melania’s signature style of ethno-classical ballet. We believe that through sharing this piece, we can continue to fight for freedom in Iran.

It is with great pleasure that we invite you to join us on Thursday, May 18th. Our performance will be held at the Herbst Theatre at 5pm, followed by a gala dinner at 7pm in the Green Room, featuring traditional Persian cuisine. The evening will feature live performances by some of the Bay Area's most talented artists and a live auction with unique and exciting items. Proceeds from this event support our local educational and dance programs as well as the Center for Human Rights in Iran, which works tirelessly to promote and protect the rights of all Iranians. By attending this event, you will be supporting a truly worthy cause. We hope that you’ll join us in celebration of our 25 years of justice through dance, but more importantly join us in the fight for freedom! 

On March 20, 2023, we will present our annual Children’s Day at the SF War Memorial Opera House: A Norouz Celebration! We will feature a special Norouz Suite in celebration of the Persian New Year and the first day of Spring. The Norouz Suite will highlight the beauty of Iranian culture through classical Persian dance and folkloric dances of ethnic minorities –Assyrian and Armenian. We will also be displaying a traditional haft-seen table, an ancient Persian tradition, consisting of symbolic items to welcome the New Year. We’re very excited to create this celebration of Norouz at the SF War Memorial Opera House, as it is a historic first for our city. To date, 120,000, underserved Bay Area students have enjoyed our performances, offered at no cost to students, teachers and families. As always, we welcome our sponsors to attend the 11am performance and invite you to join us!

Join us on March 20, 2023 at 9:30am and 11:00am at the SF War Memorial Opera House.

Grazie Mille to Consul General Strozzi for honoring PDT and our director, Sherene Melania, the Assisi Sister City Committee, the Knights of St. Francis and Roots of Peace for the goodwill that was exchanged between San Francisco, Rome and Assisi over the summer. From our performances, to jointly planting an olive tree and inaugurating a fresco restoration in Assisi, the bonds of friendship forged between our cities made a lasting impression. We’re so proud of all of our young artists and families for representing SF. Viva Italia!

On June 20, 2022, our director Sherene Melania led our delegation of 62 to Assisi. We performed as guests of the Piazza Inferiore di San Francesco, a UNESCO World Heritage site and an important landmark in Italy. We had the pleasure of performing with the Rondine Balletto di Assisi in front of the Basilica di Santa Maria degli Angeli, and we are grateful to Mayor Stefania Proietti and the City's gracious welcome. 

In line with our mission of social justice and humanitarian work, we partnered with A Chance in Life, performing a benefit concert for La Repubblica dei Ragazzi, in Civitavecchia. The orphanage, founded by the Pope in 1945, remains a vibrant community and an excellent model for youth development. 

We were welcomed by ACIL’s Executive Director, Gabriele Delmonaco, Father Rafael Diaz, and the children. Following our performance, we toured the facility and shared a memorable group dinner. We were thrilled to present La Repubblica dei Ragazzi with a check for the funds that we helped raise during ACIL’s spring gala in SF.

Please join the Board of Directors of the Presidio Performing Arts Foundation; Gala Co-Chairs Farah Makras and Sonya Molodetskaya; and Honoree Roselyne Chroman Swig (2022 Humanitarian Awardee) for our Spring Season Performance & Gala!

Wednesday, June 1st

Five o’clock in the evening

The Little Lantern Ballet®~Herbst Theatre

Seven o’clock in the evening Gala Dinner~Green Room

The evening will benefit our Educational, Performance, & Cultural Diplomacy Programs.

Thank you all for making our event a success! We were delighted to be joined by Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis and Mayor Art Agnos, in celebration of our honoree, Mayor Brown. A special thank you to J Riccardo Benavides for the fabulous floral arrangements and to our amazing gala co-chairs, Farah Makras & Sonya Molodetskaya for a sold out luncheon. We are thrilled to report that we raised the funding to launch our new DANCEOUT! program at the Booker T Washington Center. We are equally excited to announce that PDT has been selected to travel to Assisi, Italy, representing San Francisco. Thanks to our Supervisor Catherine Stefani and President of the Sister City Committee, Richard Armanino for making this happen. We're tremendously grateful for everyone's continued support and generosity!                                             

Join us at the Fort Mason Center for the Arts & Culture for Sherene Melania’s Beyond the Land of Sweets! 

Beyond the Land of Sweets is a lively spin-off of the cherished Nutcracker Ballet, following Clara’s travels all around the globe as she celebrates holiday traditions across cultures. An enchanted trip to Whoville, dancing reindeer, and Tinsel the Tree, make this the perfect family-friendly show. Enjoy a special premiere of “Cracking the Nut,” featuring Presidio Dance Theatre and international ballet artists, discussing their favorite pieces of the famous holiday spectacle.