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Joffrey Ballet
The Joffrey Ballet of Chicago is an American ballet company known worldwide for its commitment to artistic excellence and new ideas.
This classically trained company shows the creative vision and creativity of its founders, Robert Joffrey and Gerald Arpino, in Chicago and worldwide. The company performs a wide range of works, from classic masterpieces to cutting-edge pieces from the 21st century.
The Company's Past
The Joffrey Ballet of Chicago is undoubtedly one of the finest dancing companies in the United States. Joffrey turned ballet, mostly a European art form, into a truly American art form by combining classical dances from the 19th and 20th centuries and new American works.
The Joffrey Ballet is known for keeping old masterpieces like Nijinsky's "Le Sacre du Printemps" and Kurt Jooss's "The Green Table" alive and creating new dances for ballet. Some of the best-known ballets by founder Robert Joffrey are Pas de Déesses, Remembrances, Astarte, and Postcards.
Gerald Arpino, who helped start the company and is now its artistic director, is one of the best-known and most prolific choreographers in the United States. His works include Sea Shadow, Ropes, Incubus, Light Rain, and Billboards.
The company also performs works by modern choreographers like George Balanchine, Laura Dean, Frederick Ashton, Mark Morris, and many more.
The 1990s and Beyond: The Joffrey Years After Joffrey
The company went on a national tour in 1992; unfortunately, its annual season in New York was suddenly canceled due to cost and lack of support in the city. A donation of $1.25 million from someone who didn't want to be known kept the Joffrey going that year.
Arpino's Billboards, dance to the music of pop singer Prince, was a big hit for the company in 1993. It was the kind of show everyone liked, keeping Arpino's popularity. It was making money, but it had to watch how much it spent because its future was uncertain.
But by the beginning of 1995, The Joffrey was in big financial trouble. By 2000, ticket sales and other earned income comprised about 40% of the company's budget. Philip Morris, AT&T, and American Airlines were among the companies that gave money to it.
The president and CEO of Sara Lee Corporation, based in Chicago, was named the new chairman of the board of The Joffrey. Donations from businesses and other sources comprised 60% of Joffrey's income.
Once the company was settled in Chicago, it was finally able to start saving money to protect itself from the climbdown that had made its past so hard.
Before its 50th anniversary in 2006, the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago started making plans to move into new buildings in downtown Chicago.