The 2024-2025 season of Philadelphia-based contemporary ballet company BalletX is underway. This year, the exciting season announcement was also accompanied by the news that company dancers will receive year-round contracts, and expand to include three more dancers.
“What makes a BalletX dancer truly special is not just their incredible technique and artistry, but also their ability to tell stories through movement in such a powerful, authentic way,” says BalletX Artistic Director Christine Cox. Formerly a dancer herself, Cox co-founded BalletX in 2005, with Matthew Neenan. “Our dancers bring so much heart and depth to every performance. They’re not just executing choreography; they’re connecting with the audience on an emotional level. We have dancers who have truly made their lives and careers here in Philadelphia, which is such a testament to the strength of our company and the bonds we’ve built.”
Cox adds, “Dancers give so much of themselves. They deserve long-term stability to support their craft and their lives outside the studio. By providing year-round contracts, we’re offering them the opportunity to focus fully on their artistry without the stress of finding work between seasons. It’s about creating sustainable careers so they can thrive not just as dancers but as people.”
“A year-round contract means stability for me,” says Francesca Forcella, a BalletX company dancer who has been with the company since 2013. “There is less worrying about trying to supplement my income on layoff periods. There is also more time to develop our work at BalletX because we are not starting and stopping too much.”
Forcella adds, “I cannot choose just one thing I am looking forward to for our Fall Series,” says Forcella. “Mapping Out a Sky by the wonderful Matthew Neenan is a work I premiered back in 2022, and it is always fun to revisit a piece at a different time in life. Matt will add new, fresh nuances to the work that I am eager to discover alongside some new dancers being added to the cast. Similarly, Heroes by Takehiro Ueyama is a work I will be returning to, and I am excited to be able to dive deeper into my role in the ballet with more shows to sculpt who I am in the piece from start to finish.”
Forcella describes a new premiere of work by Marguerite Donlon as a challenge in the program. “A new work has a sense of beautiful anticipation leading up to its premiere, and you don’t know how the piece will feel fully until its birth on stage.”
An adjunct to theatrical programming BalletX offers are Pop Up performances, making the artform and their program more accessible. “We have performed over 40 pop-ups throughout Philadelphia, including at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Barnes Foundation, Historic Germantown, Esperanza, Jefferson Station, CHOP, Dilworth Plaza, LOVE Park, 30th Street Station, says Cox. ‘We’ve definitely seen people attend our performances at the theater after discovering us through a pop-up. It sparks curiosity, and once they get a taste of BalletX, many want to experience more. But even if they don’t come to the theater, these pop-ups are a success in their own right’ says Cox.
Check out the new dancers in the works by Neenan and Donlon at the Suzanne Roberts Theatre, November 13-17.
Find out more at balletx.org.
By Tamara Searle of Dance Informa.
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