Joffrey Ballet Launches First-of-its-Kind Contemporary Ballet Training Program
By Lauren Warnecke, Chicago Tribune
August 16, 2022
A new program at the Joffrey Ballet Academy of Dance aims to diversify job training for professional dancers on the rise. This fall, approximately 10 dancers will be the first cohort of contemporary ballet trainees with the Joffrey Ballet. The initiative is purported to be the first of its kind for a major U.S. ballet company and is part of a five-year strategic plan launched in 2020 to expand Joffrey’s education and community engagement programs.
The Contemporary Ballet Trainee Program is modeled after the Joffrey Ballet’s current Trainee Program in classical ballet, a postsecondary alternative that prepares dancers for professional performance careers. Students aged 17 and older may spend up to two years in the full-time training program and are selected by audition. Contemporary ballet trainees will function independently from their classical counterparts. They will rehearse and take classes at Joffrey’s new South Loop studios, opened in 2021 at 1920 S. Wabash Ave.