2013-2014 SEASON ANNUAL REPORT SUMMARY BalletMet completed a 36th consecutive season as Central Ohio’s resident professional ballet company, serving a total constituency of 103,000. Audiences enjoyed 87 performances in Columbus and on tour, and 25,000 youth participated in DanceReach training and education programs. Dance Academy enrollment of 1,670 students of all ages trained in 300 classes at the downtown Columbus Dance Centre and two suburban locations. BalletMet served more than 200 school classrooms, including many multi- week residencies aligned with Ohio Department of Education standards. Internationally renowned dancer and choreographer Edwaard Liang began his tenure as BalletMet Artistic Director July 1, 2013. Mr. Liang’s inspiring vision, fresh leadership and global perspective have energized the board, staff and the Central Ohio community. While at the helm as Artistic Director, Mr. Liang has continued to choreograph worldwide – escalating the visibility of both his own artistry and of BalletMet. He has created a bold programming plan for the next seven seasons to augment Columbus performances with appearances at national and international dance venues. His vision includes further development of BalletMet’s central goal: create and perform new work and contemporary masterworks. BalletMet’s resident, professional Company of 26 dancers includes artists with tenures from 20 years to those beginning their careers. With performance backgrounds from around the globe, all Company dancers are full-time Central Ohio residents. Our audiences and students represent 80 Ohio counties and 41 states. BalletMet ranks among the nation’s top 20 ballet companies, and our highly-regarded Dance Academy is among the largest U.S. dance schools affiliated with a professional company. Artistic Highlights During BalletMet’s international search for a new Artistic Director, the 2013-2014 season was programmed by former Artistic Consultant James Kudelka with the final program left open for incoming leadership. This opportunity challenged Mr. Liang to produce a world class season finale – the stunning New Directions/New Works triple bill described below – to celebrate his first year and excite audiences about his future creative imprint on BalletMet dancers and for Columbus audiences. Mr. Liang arranged invitations for BalletMet to perform at the annual National Choreographers’ Initiative in Irvine, California in July, and at the International Dance Festival in Indianapolis in September. For the 2013-2014 season in Columbus, 75 performances at the Ohio, Capitol and Lincoln Theatres, along with the outdoor Bicentennial Park venue, drew a total audience of 70,000. Swan Lake was the first of two major collaborations with Cincinnati Ballet, co-produced and co- performed to open BalletMet’s Columbus performance season and performed again in October at Cincinnati. With a full ensemble of 99 dancers, the corps de ballet included 24 exquisitely synchronized swans. A full-length program of master choreographer James Kudelka’s works featured a Columbus Premiere of The Four Seasons, along with two audience favorites created as BalletMet World Premieres: Man in Black (2012) and There, below (1989). A perennial holiday gem, The Nutcracker was enlivened with orchestral accompaniment at home with the Columbus Symphony and on tour at the Detroit Opera House with the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra. Family friendly Alice in Wonderland, reprising BalletMet’s 2006 World Premiere with CATCO, introduced many new, young audience members to the magic of ballet. BalletMet performed on a Columbus Gay Men’s Chorus series, with live vocal accompaniment for the moved. be to dare whimsical Group Therapy. Through rarely granted performance rights from The George Balanchine Trust, BalletMet and Cincinnati Ballet collaborated for a second production – a triple bill that included Balanchine’s Edwaard Liang, Artistic Director | Cheri Mitchell, Executive Director Company and Administration: 614.229.4860 I Dance Academy: 614.224.1672 I Box Office: 614.229.4848 I Fax: 614.229.4858 322 Mount Vernon Avenue Columbus, Ohio 43215 I Website: www.balletmet.org masterful Symphony in C, Victoria Morgan’s Bolero, and Wünderland, the first presentation of Mr. Liang’s work for Columbus audiences. New Directions/New Works, the first BalletMet series with programming by Mr. Liang, featured his inaugural BalletMet World Premiere, two Company Premieres by world renowned choreographers, and high level artistry from Company dancers: • Carousel by Christopher Wheeldon, Artistic Associate of The Royal Ballet, demanded exceptional precision and clarity; • 18+1 by Gustavo Ramírez Sansano, former Artistic Director of Luna Negra Dance Theatre, paired explosive speed with comic timing; • Mr. Liang’s of Heaven & Earth was set to dynamic, powerful Rachmaninoff music that required equally powerful and physically demanding dancing; • Carousel and of Heaven & Earth held the additional challenges of live accompaniment by two grand pianos, including dancers interacting with the pianists. Live music enhances performances while it also challenges dancers, requiring focus and sensitivity to varying musical tempos. BalletMet introduced new artistic branding in collaboration with Maria Pinto fashions and Zaire Kacz Photography, shot at Columbus’s Athletic Club and the Union Station Arch. An exhibit featuring fine art photos of “The Reveal” was presented by Meleca Gallery in February 2014. The images will be used in 2014-2015 print materials and promotions. DanceReach Academy and Education Highlights Dance Academy rebranding for the 2013-2014 season included newly-designed print materials to portray the joyful rewards of studying dance with BalletMet’s professional, experienced faculty members, many with international performance backgrounds. An international search for a new Academy Director was completed in the spring, naming Tim Lynch, former Artistic Director of the Seattle Dance Project who also danced and later taught on the faculty of Pacific Northwest Ballet for many years. BalletMet’s Dance Academy, with annual enrollment of nearly 1,700, welcomed students of all ages. With the downtown Dance Centre as its Academy hub, BalletMet is the exclusive dance provider at the McConnell Arts Center in Worthington, teaches accredited PE classes on-site at Reynoldsburg H.S. Encore Academy to fulfill graduation requirements, and offers accredited classes for Columbus State Community College students. The Academy offered a range of classes for all age and skill levels. Along with ballet, classes included modern, jazz, tap, flamenco, yoga and Pilates. The 2014 five-week BalletMet Summer Intensive, including a two-week Junior Intensive for 8-12 year olds, attracted 236 student dancers from multiple Ohio counties and 21 states. The annual Summer Intensive provides highly-personalized, rigorous training for exceptionally talented students, many who aspire to careers in dance. SummerDance day camps and workshops are also offered as recreational dance experiences for youth. Dance Academy performances and ensembles offered an extra level of participation, with students eligible to audition for roles in large-cast productions including The Nutcracker. BalletMet’s Dance-in-Schools programs reached more than 8,000 school-age youth in 200+ area classrooms. Dance-in-Schools aligns with Ohio Department of Dance Common Core Standards, and outside evaluations quantify BalletMet’s effectiveness in impacting students’ social-emotional, physical, cognitive, and developmental skills. Dance-in-Schools includes Morning at the Ballet abbreviated in- theatre performances, Moving Into Literacy residencies in elementary classrooms, and The Wiggle Jig early childhood curriculum in preK schools and centers. Teaching artists deliver curriculum-based, sequential and age appropriate offerings that fully engage teachers and students in the learning process. With special funding from Battelle, BalletMet increased the number of STEM learning modules for The Wiggle Jig preK curriculum, and expanded the residency from 10 to 25 weeks at select locations. BalletMet has licensed The Wiggle Jig, and an Ohio Arts Council grant enabled expansion of this unique program outside of Central Ohio. The Center for Arts Inspired Learning will begin teaching The Wiggle Jig in northeastern Ohio in fall 2014. BALLETMET 2013-2014 SEASON ANNUAL REPORT SUMMARY PAGE 2 Through designated contributions to the DanceReach Fund, BalletMet is able to introduce dance to children with limited access to arts experiences. Along with Dance-in-Schools programs, DanceReach activities such as Dance Academy scholarships and needs-based financial aid, experiential Academy Open Houses, and complimentary KidTix offer no-or-low cost access to dance for individuals from underserved populations. Community Highlights Community members are drawn to the inspiration and beauty of BalletMet’s artists and artistry, and to the enthusiasm and joy of Dance Academy students and their families. Multiple opportunities to know dancers as “real people” occur through personal encounters at performances, meetings, rehearsals and special events. Relationships develop, and audience members often seek out selected performances to see their favorite dancers in specific roles. BalletMet stakeholders express pride in knowing their participation, advocacy and financial support helps the artists, art form and arts education to thrive. Academy parents bring children to performances to show the