DEAR EDITOR:

The crowd who braved the snow and cold Tuesday night were gifted with a world-class performance by the Dance Theatre of Harlem at Powers Auditorium.

DTH is celebrating 50 years of bringing its unique brand of cultural diversity and excellence to the realm of ballet.

More than 40 years have passed since the company first came to Youngstown and discovered 16-year-old Stephanie Dabney at our own Ballet Western Reserve.

Dabney became a principal dancer with DTH, performing the signature role of The Firebird.

Tuesday night, the company performed Orange, a courtly dance, to the music of Vivaldi. A new work, Passage,was a mesmerizing interpretion of the first ocean crossing of enslaved Africans. The final ballet, Return, was a funky tribute to comtemporary artists James Brown and Aretha Franklin.

This is with appreciation to YSU and the Donald Pipino performing arts series for bringing such outstanding talent to Youngstown.

MARGARET FLOYD

Youngstown