The Columbia City Ballet is celebrating its 51st Anniversary season by bringing the work of a South Carolina icon to life in a remount of one of the company’s most lauded productions.

Dancing the Art of Jonathan Green brings the paintings of this expressive, Lowcountry artist “off the wall and onto the stage,” with magnificent backdrops echoing Green’s beautiful landscapes and colorful costumes that mirror the forms in his work.

Jonathan Green grew up in the 1960s in coastal South Carolina, immersed in the Gullah language and culture of his heritage. He went on to receive a degree from the Art Institute of Chicago, but his work remained deeply rooted in the Sea Island culture of his home. His paintings are filled with images of colorfully dressed African Americans in settings that are, as he puts it, “steeped in the traditions of family, community and life in the Southern United States.” The paintings are full of joy, life and spirit, and have been displayed in major venues around the world.

This production was conceived and brought to life by Columbia City Ballet Artistic Director William Starrett. It is made up of a series of danced vignettes based on 22 separate Jonathan Green paintings.

Green’s paintings have a real energy and feeling of movement in their brushstrokes, so bringing them to life through dance seems a natural fit. Set to gospel, jazz, Lowcountry hymns and folk songs, the dance event further expresses the culture of the world that inspired the paintings in the first place.

Performances are Sept. 30 at 7:30 p.m., Oct. 1 at 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., and Oct. 2 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets range from $25-35. Click here for ticket information and news about Columbia City Ballet’s season.