San Antonio families have a brand-new reason to visit the Tobin Center this fall. Ballet Texas, a nonprofit ballet company based in Boerne, brings its world-premiere production of “The Adventures of Pinocchio” to the Carlos Alvarez Studio Theater on Saturday, November 21 and Sunday, November 22, 2026, with performances at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. on both days.
The production is an original, full-length story ballet created especially for this premiere. Choreographed by Leo DeLaCruz and Sarah DeLaCruz, it follows the beloved wooden puppet on his mischievous journey toward becoming a real boy, with all the heart, humor, and gentle life lessons that have made Carlo Collodi’s tale a favorite of children and parents for generations.
The Carlos Alvarez Studio Theater is the Tobin Center’s flexible black-box space, seating roughly 250 to 310 guests in an intimate setting where young audiences can see every expression, costume detail, and leap up close. For many children, a studio-theater premiere like this one is the perfect first ballet: close to the dancers, easy to follow, and full of story.
Ballet Texas is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to making classical ballet welcoming and accessible across the San Antonio area and the Texas Hill Country. Its dancers train at the company’s Boerne studio, and its productions regularly travel to stages around the region, building a growing community of young performers and first-time balletgoers.
The Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, on the banks of the River Walk at 100 Auditorium Circle, is one of San Antonio’s cultural landmarks, home to resident companies and family programming throughout the year. Tickets for “The Adventures of Pinocchio” are on sale now through the Tobin Center box office and its official website, tobincenter.org.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
