I just noticed on the Colorado Ballet website that Jocelyn Labsan is listed as "Interim Artistic Director". What happened to Martin Fredmann? He's listed under the Board of Trustees, but his name no longer appears in the staff directory, nor under "Artistic Staff".

His removal is reported in today's LINKS thead.

FREDMANN OUT AT COLORADO BALLET

Thanks, Bart.

Well, the meeting couldn't have been too bloody if they left Fredmann with a residual title....

To be continued! Read tomorrows news.

In today's Links thread there is more on this situation. Sounds a bit messy.

From the news reports, it certainly doesn't sound like an amicable parting.

So what is actually going on here? It sounds like, for the most part, Fredmann has done a good job with the company -- is the board unhappy with his work, do they have another choice in the wings, are they uncomfortable about money, are they clueless?

Fredmann didn't slam the door until Colorado Ballet repaid a $25,000 loan he had made to the company. Immediately upon receiving the money owed, he completely severed his relationship.

As a longtime donor to Colorado Ballet, I am still awaiting any contact from Colorado Ballet to advise what the changes mean to the company. Keeping donors in the dark is not a good way to get them back onboard and insure the financial future!

Thanks for the clarification. I'm still curious about the circumstances of this change -- was this a financial decision, artistic, managerial?

And what happens to the company this year -- as a mid-year shift, will they still perform his Nutcracker, or do they need to find a substitute?

I agree. But in my experience it's all too common. Donors are asked to give, but rarely given even the slightest idea of the organization's finances, unlses the size of the gift allows them to demand this as a condition.

The plan at this point is to perform Fredmann's Nutcracker and Cinderella for a fee and Fredmann's approval of casting. The details can only come to light slowly. It is a sad and shocking episode in regional ballet in the USA, yet one that has been repeated many times. Hopefully one day the ballet boards and artists will one day be on an equal footing and be able to work together. :bash:

You sound like you have inside information and I won't push, but I do hope that at some point the basic details of the saga comes out, especially if the company wants to move beyond this mess and continue to function.