Sarasota Ballet made it a night to remember, opening its 2018 Spring season at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall on March 2 with Dreams of Nature. Performing both Sir Frederick Ashton’s The Dream, the legendary choreographer’s take on Shakespeare’s magical A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and presenting the American premiere of Birmingham Royal Ballet Director David Bintley’s eco-conscious and visually stunning ‘Still Life’ at the Penguin Café, audiences saw Sarasota Ballet’s own moving toe-to-toe with international ballet superstars such as Friedemann Vogel of the Stuttgarter Ballet in Germany, and under the guidance of Sir Anthony Dowell, the original Oberon and often hailed as Britain’s greatest male dancer, and Christopher Carr, repetiteur for the Royal Ballet. The season concludes April 27–28 with Great Masters of Dance, featuring guest performer Xander Parish, principal dancer with the Mariinsky Ballet.—P.  LEDERER