The program features three works with historical significance for Nureyev and the Joffrey. Nureyev starred in Michel Fokine's Petrouchka, a carnivalesque love story set to music by Stravinsky, when he performed with the Joffrey in 1979; in 1970 he staged Vakhtang Chabukiani's Laurencia for the company, although it was never performed. The lead role in George Balanchine's Apollo, also on the program, was reportedly once of Nureyev's favorites. Apollo and the excerpts from Laurencia are both Joffrey premieres.

The company's season runs through early May, and includes performances of The Nutcracker as well as works by Balanchine, Paul Taylor, Jerome Robbins, and Joffrey artistic director Gerald Arpino. The Nureyev program runs through October 24.