iradiophilly | Culture - School Of The Pennsylvania Ballet to Return

Streaming Radio for Philadelphia
More Music. Fewer Interruptions. Just what you want to hear.

FOLLOW:

Culture
Talk about Arts, Culture, & Entertainment


The Post

School Of The Pennsylvania Ballet to Return

by: Rebel - Havertown, PA
started: 10/11/11 10:14 am | updated: 10/11/11 10:14 am

This week, the Pennsylvania Ballet plans to break ground at 321 N. Broad St. for a $17.5 million project that will feature five dance studios, offices, and facilities for a soon-to-return School of the Pennsylvania Ballet.

The organization has raised $11.2 million for the first phase of the project which will pay for the demolition of an existing building and renovation of a former garage for Brink's trucks into four dance studios.

Coming later will be a fifth studio, as large as the Academy of Music's stage, plus the renovation of a former halfway house for ex-offenders into office space.

The school will come under the direction of former Pennsylvania Ballet principal dancer William DeGregory.

Set to open in September 2012, the school expects to open a satellite branch in the suburbs within a year afterward.

Michael Scolamiero, executive director of the ballet:
"It's a powerful statement that we have $11 million in hand for this project. There are a lot of people - not only in government, but individuals and foundations - who see this as an important project."

Scolamiero said the ballet expected to raise an additional $6 million for the building through its ongoing capital campaign.

"We are literally the only major ballet company in the country without a school where we have artistic control.â€

Scolamiero said the ballet had thought about returning to a South Broad Street address. But it selected a location on the northern end of the Avenue of the Arts because of both the availability of more affordable land and the convenience of getting there for future students.

He said the proximity to public transportation and the Vine Street Expressway was a major attraction of the site. "The nice thing is Broad Street is really developing. We feel there's a bright future for North Broad."

"The company is dancing at an incredibly high level and is back again in the national spotlight. It deserves a home."

The city kicked in $1 million from its Cultural Corridors Fund, with the state contributing $2.5 million through the Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program.

"It elevates what we always wanted for North Broad Street," said City Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown, who is also a board member of the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance.

The School of the Pennsylvania Ballet opened in 1962, but during the depths of the company's financial troubles in 1992, it was spun off into a stand-alone nonprofit.

Now known as the Rock School of Dance Education, the school also took over the ballet company's former headquarters at Broad and Washington.

The Pennsylvania Ballet used the Rock School's studios until 2007, when the groups parted ways and the company moved to leased dance space in East Falls.

Roy Kaiser, the ballet company's artistic director, said the School of the Pennsylvania Ballet would become "the lifeblood" of the company and "create dancers ready to jump right in and begin professional careers with us."

Set to open in September 2012, the school expects to open a satellite branch in the suburbs within a year afterward. No site has been selected, but the company is thinking about locations in the "lower to middle Main Line," Scolamiero said.

The new ballet headquarters - to be called the Louise Reed Center for Dance, after philanthropists Louise and Alan Reed - will accommodate the company's 40 professional dancers, plus more than 200 students.

Now in its 48th season, the Pennsylvania Ballet had a surplus of $125,000 on revenue of $10.5 million for the year ended July 31.

In December, it will take its production of The Nutcracker, spruced up with new sets and costumes four years ago, to Canada's National Arts Center in Ottawa.

TOP STORIES

(0) responses

Welcome to iradiophilly! Philadelphia's Internet Radio Community

Welcome! Start listening now for FREE! The music is always on, so choose a radio station and click to listen. You can find fun Events around Philly and you can list yours on our Events page FREE. We will also promote cool Philly shows, events and fundraisers on the air FREE. There are also great opportunities to become a sponsor or advertise. iRadioPhilly supports the Philadelphia music and arts scene. If you are a local musician or performer, send us your stuff. We will play it on our BYO radio station, Philadelphia's Local Stage. We're designing the radio stations and iradiophilly to reflect Philadelphia's music tastes, so we'll want your input. We're glad you're here. Invite your friends.

FOLLOW:

Site Design by Bananaland | Built by quadpain media