Colorado Ballet Reimagines The Remainder Of Its 2020/2021 Season
Denver, CO (November 12, 2020) – Colorado Ballet announces that the company is currently reimagining the remainder of their 2020/2021 season. Given the ongoing restrictions and safety considerations surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, all remaining performances for the 2020/2021 season that were originally scheduled at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House with a live audience will not take place. However, Colorado Ballet is delighted to announce that all productions including The Great Gatsby, The Wizard of Oz and Giselle will be rescheduled. Colorado Ballet is also thrilled to collaborate with Rocky Mountain PBS to bring The Nutcracker into patrons’ homes this holiday season from Thanksgiving to Christmas Day, in partnership with PNC Bank.
“In spite of the current situation that prevents us from gathering together to present and enjoy live mainstage productions, we remain committed to bringing world-class dance to our audiences,” stated Artistic Director Gil Boggs. “Right now we are reimagining the remainder of our current season. We are excited about the new possibilities our current circumstances present and the opportunity for our dancers to work on and perform different types of repertoire. We will do everything possible to enable our dancers to continue to share their artistry with our patrons.”
In January 2021, Colorado Ballet’s dancers will return to work and begin rehearsals for alternative, mixed-repertory programs that will be performed in February, March and April of 2021, featuring solos and pas de deux. To create these works, Colorado Ballet’s full company of dancers will divide into smaller pods that will rehearse and perform together, alternating between various pods for mixed repertory performances. Patrons will have the opportunity to view these intimate performances virtually via digital features online. Also, as health and safety guidelines allow, a limited number of patrons will be able to attend these performances in the Black Box Theater at Colorado Ballet’s Armstrong Center for Dance. Stay tuned as we approach 2021 for more information about how to view and experience these productions.
Colorado Ballet Needs Community Support to Continue Creating Dance
As a non-profit performing arts organization, Colorado Ballet has been significantly impacted by the pandemic and the resulting inability to create and present large-scale productions during this unprecedented time. With the loss of all five productions scheduled for Colorado Ballet’s 60th Anniversary Season in 2020/2021, the company will not receive any ticketing revenue from mainstage performances at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, which typically exceeds $5 million annually and accounts for nearly 56 percent of Colorado Ballet’s yearly operating budget.
The Nutcracker is Colorado Ballet’s longest running production and a beloved holiday tradition for countless families. The loss of ticket revenue from this single production is substantial. With the spirit of holiday giving in mind, the organization asks Colorado Ballet’s patrons and the general arts-loving public to consider making a contribution this holiday season. In light of this need, Colorado Ballet has launched a Relief & Recovery Fund. With a fundraising goal of $3 million, this fund will help to cover a significant portion of the lost ticketing revenue, helping Colorado Ballet to emerge from this crisis as the strong company it has become over the past 60 years.
Colorado Ballet is exceedingly grateful to every individual and organization that has offered their support to help Colorado Ballet during these extraordinarily difficult times.
With many performing arts organizations struggling at this time, patrons who would like to contribute to a brighter future for non-profit arts organizations can consider donating their tickets back to the organization, reinvesting in the productions that we will again enjoy on the other side of this pandemic. It’s estimated that approximately 25 to 30 percent of Colorado Ballet season ticket buyers will donate their tickets back to the organization. Colorado Ballet has received approximately $30,000 in ticket donations from season ticket subscribers thus far. If every subscriber holding season tickets donated their subscription back to Colorado Ballet, it would help the organization’s fundraising efforts by $220,000. Visit coloradoballet.org to learn more about the Relief and Recovery Fund and programming throughout the remainder of the 2020/2021 season. Season tickets for the 2021/2022 season will go on sale in February 2021.
ABOUT COLORADO BALLET
Presenting exceptional classical ballet and innovative contemporary dance through performances, training, education and community engagement, Colorado Ballet continues to inspire and grow an increasingly diverse audience base in Denver, Colo. Established in 1961 by Lillian Covillo and Freidann Parker, Colorado Ballet is a non-profit organization celebrating 60 years of excellence. As a world-class professional company serving over 100,000 national and international patrons, Colorado Ballet typically presents 55 performances annually to sold-out audiences in the 2,000 seat Ellie Caulkins Opera House. The Company’s 32 professional dancers and 21 studio company dancers come from all over the world. Colorado Ballet’s The Armstrong Center for Dance, a 35,000 square foot building, boasts eight state-of-the-art professional dance studios and amenities for the professional Company. Under the direction of Artistic Director Gil Boggs, Colorado Ballet performs classical ballet masterpieces, full-length story ballets and its critically-acclaimed repertory production Ballet MasterWorks, featuring varied works from neoclassical ballets to world premieres. The Raydean Acevedo Colorado Ballet Academy serves over 1,200 students from toddlers to seniors each year. Colorado Ballet’s Education & Community Engagement offers programs to students and community members, making over 25,000 contacts and reaching over 200 schools and organizations annually. Participants come from a variety of backgrounds and socioeconomic statuses including youth, families, teachers and people with and without disabilities. For more information please visit COLORADOBALLET.ORG.
