Lunch at Maxim's

The magic of the Joffrey Ballet’s production The Merry Widow was captured at Lunch at Maxim’s, a Parisian-inspired afternoon affair at the Four Seasons Hotel Chicago, which paid tribute to the famous French eatery with can-can dancers, French martinis and creative cuisine. Co-chairs Jillisa Brittan and Cheryl Cook and junior co-chairs Sabrina Weeks-Brittan and Emily Cook welcomed Chicago socialites Sugar Rautbord, Yolanda Tyler, Joffrey Women’s Board President Christine Ott, and Joffrey’s Ashley Wheater and Christopher Clinton Conway to the daytime benefit. Attendees received 10 percent off tickets to the Joffrey’s winter program, and a spectacular raffle even included a trip to the City of Light. Young students from South Shore Fine Arts Academy performed dance routines, including selections from The Nutcracker. The school participated in Joffrey’s Boeing Bridge Program—a dance program introducing Chicago Public School students to ballet techniques—and the luncheon raised more than $50,000 for this initiative and other Joffrey programs.