Marie Hale, Ballet Florida's founder and Artistic Director, spoke to the audience before all performances of the company's final program at the Eissey Theater. She said the financial problems were real and serious, but that the news story had stimulated an enormous amount of support -- both financial and offers of volunteer service, as well as endorsements from a number of major ballet professionals who have worked with the company.
The 2008-09 season will be expanded and reconfigured compared to past seasons.
-- Nutcracker at the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach remains. (It's usually 9 or so performances) The other two Kravis productions will both be, for the first time I believe, full-lengths: their Vicente Nebrada Cinderella and a Midsummer Night's Dream choreographed by Norbert Vesak. Since Vesak -- for several years the head of the Metropolitan Opera Ballet -- died in 1990, this ballet was created for a company that was smaller and only partly professional.
-- A new series of 2 programs has been created for the Duncan Theater on the Lake Worth campus of Palm Beach Community College. This is the theater which gets most of the major (and smaller) modern dance companies.
-- The 2 programs at the Eissey Theater in Palm Beach Gardens will remain as before, one in the fall and one in the spring.
Doing fulll-lengths at the Kravis -- a 2000+ seat opera house -- makes sense. They sell better than the mixed bills. I don't know anything about their MN'sDream, but the photos I've seen don't appear to be anywhere near Ballet Florida's current size or standards. I wonder what the costs of expanding and updating might be.
The move to the Duncan is an excellent idea. The theater already has an important dance series, and it's located much closer to Boca and the other south-county communities that are traditionally more supportive of the serious arts (dance especially) than is the north county, where the Eissey is located. In terms of size and production facilities, both the Duncan and Eissey are ideal for the kind of mixed-bill programming this 23-dancer company performs.
Full Version: Update on Ballet Florida crisis
QUOTE (bart @ May 4 2008, 12:42 PM) 
Marie Hale, Ballet Florida's founder and Artistic Director, spoke to the audience before all performances of the company's final program at the Eissey Theater. She said the financial problems were real and serious, but that the news story had stimulated an enormous amount of support -- both financial and offers of volunteer service, as well as endorsements from a number of major ballet professionals who have worked with the company.
The 2008-09 season will be expanded and reconfigured compared to past seasons.
The 2008-09 season will be expanded and reconfigured compared to past seasons.
Thank you bart, for the insights at BF's future. I really hope for the big pockets to open to keep the good work going and for a succesful new season. Meanwhile, i was looking at their website, and i realized that today they are actually dancing the last performance of their 07/08 Season finale!.
This is the program:
07/08 Season Finale.
The Eissey Campus Theatre at Palm Beach Community College
1-Jerry Opdenaker. "World Premiere"
2-George Balanchine. "Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux"
3-George Balanchine. "Allegro Brillante"
4-Lar Lubovitch. "Elemental Brubeck"
http://balletflorida.com/index.cfm?fuseact...es.PERFORMANCES 0607 Eissey &x=9293063
Ballet Florida has met its financial goals and has now announced its expanded 2007-08 season. This is according to an article in the Palm Beach Daily News, posted by dirac in today's LINKS column:
Donors Step Up to Save Ballet Florida
Here's the program schedule. There are two new programs at the Duncan Theater in on the Palm Beach Community College campus about 10 miles south of West Palm Beach.
BALLET FLORIDA'S 2008-2009 SEASON
DUNCAN THEATRE -- Lake Worth
Program I: "From Far Away," Mauricio Wainrot; "Musette," Lar Lubovitch; "Second Before The Ground," Trey McIntyre. Times: 8 p.m. Nov. 14; 2 and 8 p.m. Nov. 15
Program II: "Smile With My Heart," Lar Lubovitch; "Coeur De Basque," Jerry Opdenaker; "Bakers Dozen," Twyla Tharp; "Read My Hips," Daniel Ezralow. Times: 2 p.m. April 24; 2 and 8 p.m. April 25
EISSEY CAMPUS THEATRE -- Palm Beach Gardens
Program I: "Crash," Ma Cong; "A Handel Celebration," Vicente Nebrada; "Lento a Tempo e Appassionato," Vicente Nebrada; "Read My Hips," Daniel Ezralow. Times: 8 p.m. Nov. 21; 2 and 8 p.m. Nov. 22; 2 p.m. Nov. 23
Program II: "Bartok Concerto," Ben Stevenson; "Dvorak Concerto," Lar Lubovitch; "Our Waltzes," Vicente Nebrada. Times: 8 p.m. May 1; 2 and 8 p.m. May 2; 2 p.m. May 3
KRAVIS CENTER -- West Palm Beach
Marie Hale's "The Nutcracker:" Times: 1 and 7 p.m. Dec. 23, 26 and 27; 1 p.m. Dec. 24 and 28; 7 p.m. Dec. 25
Program I: "A Midsummer Night's Dream," Norbert Vesak. Times: 8 p.m. Jan. 30; 2 and 8 p.m. Jan. 31
Program II: "Cinderella," Vicente Nebrada. Times: 8 p.m. March 6; 2 and 8 p.m. March 7
Donors Step Up to Save Ballet Florida
Here's the program schedule. There are two new programs at the Duncan Theater in on the Palm Beach Community College campus about 10 miles south of West Palm Beach.
BALLET FLORIDA'S 2008-2009 SEASON
DUNCAN THEATRE -- Lake Worth
Program I: "From Far Away," Mauricio Wainrot; "Musette," Lar Lubovitch; "Second Before The Ground," Trey McIntyre. Times: 8 p.m. Nov. 14; 2 and 8 p.m. Nov. 15
Program II: "Smile With My Heart," Lar Lubovitch; "Coeur De Basque," Jerry Opdenaker; "Bakers Dozen," Twyla Tharp; "Read My Hips," Daniel Ezralow. Times: 2 p.m. April 24; 2 and 8 p.m. April 25
EISSEY CAMPUS THEATRE -- Palm Beach Gardens
Program I: "Crash," Ma Cong; "A Handel Celebration," Vicente Nebrada; "Lento a Tempo e Appassionato," Vicente Nebrada; "Read My Hips," Daniel Ezralow. Times: 8 p.m. Nov. 21; 2 and 8 p.m. Nov. 22; 2 p.m. Nov. 23
Program II: "Bartok Concerto," Ben Stevenson; "Dvorak Concerto," Lar Lubovitch; "Our Waltzes," Vicente Nebrada. Times: 8 p.m. May 1; 2 and 8 p.m. May 2; 2 p.m. May 3
KRAVIS CENTER -- West Palm Beach
Marie Hale's "The Nutcracker:" Times: 1 and 7 p.m. Dec. 23, 26 and 27; 1 p.m. Dec. 24 and 28; 7 p.m. Dec. 25
Program I: "A Midsummer Night's Dream," Norbert Vesak. Times: 8 p.m. Jan. 30; 2 and 8 p.m. Jan. 31
Program II: "Cinderella," Vicente Nebrada. Times: 8 p.m. March 6; 2 and 8 p.m. March 7
QUOTE
Details about cuts in the company's operating budget are still being worked out, [Executive Director Ken] Okel said.
"It's an ongoing process."
At the same time [ ... ] Ballet Florida released the performance schedule for its 23rd season. It begins in mid-November and includes one company premiere, Crash by Ma Cong, part of a three-day program slated for Nov. 21 to 23 at the Eissey Campus Theatre at the Palm Beach Community College campus in Palm Beach Gardens.
The new Ballet Florida production has been underwritten by a longtime friend of Hale's, Andrew Allagree, a former dancer with the company who lives in Memphis.
"He liked the ballet, which is a one-man performance, and decided to underwrite its production," Hale said.
"This is the only new production for the season," Hale said, noting that she consciously did not propose any new ballets for the upcoming season, acknowledging the large financial commitment required to stage such works.
"Crash is fully funded," she said, explaining that the production will not affect the company's budget for the season.
"It's an ongoing process."
At the same time [ ... ] Ballet Florida released the performance schedule for its 23rd season. It begins in mid-November and includes one company premiere, Crash by Ma Cong, part of a three-day program slated for Nov. 21 to 23 at the Eissey Campus Theatre at the Palm Beach Community College campus in Palm Beach Gardens.
The new Ballet Florida production has been underwritten by a longtime friend of Hale's, Andrew Allagree, a former dancer with the company who lives in Memphis.
"He liked the ballet, which is a one-man performance, and decided to underwrite its production," Hale said.
"This is the only new production for the season," Hale said, noting that she consciously did not propose any new ballets for the upcoming season, acknowledging the large financial commitment required to stage such works.
"Crash is fully funded," she said, explaining that the production will not affect the company's budget for the season.
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