dailyloe.com – Jane Fonda attended a San Francisco ballet performance on Saturday, April 18, offering support for the arts. The Oscar-winning actress was in the city as a keynote speaker for a health summit. She visited the Blue Shield of California Theater at YBCA for an afternoon matinee. The performance was part of the Alonzo King Lines Ballet’s spring home season.
The double bill featured a new collaboration called ‘Legacy’. It was created by Alonzo King and Grammy-winning artist Esperanza Spalding. The program also included the return of King’s 2024 work ‘Ode to Alice Coltrane’. The performances concluded on Sunday, April 19.
Fonda was invited by her friend Lucia Choi-Dalton, a former board chair for the ballet. Choi-Dalton delivered a speech to the audience before the show began. She stated the arts generate joy and inspire imagination about a better world. She said the power of that joy threatens dark forces.
‘The arts play a crucial role generating joy and inspiring imagination about a better world,’ Choi-Dalton said. She added that this power threatens forces that want to stifle freedom. ‘As you experience this performance, I hope you will treasure how it makes you feel,’ she continued. She noted that ‘joy is resistance’ against authoritarian forces targeting the arts.
After the matinee, Fonda spoke with the San Francisco Chronicle backstage. ‘I’m deeply moved by what I saw,’ Fonda told the Chronicle. The actress was visibly emotional following the performance. Her appearance marked her latest public show of support for the arts.
At 88, Fonda continues to use her platform to advocate for various causes. She champions civil liberties, environmental issues, and arts organizations. Her support comes amid concern over political pressure and funding uncertainty in the U.S. arts sector. The event highlighted the role of artistic expression in contemporary society.
