Dancers Become Choreographers

Texas Ballet Theater (TBT) will digitally present four world premiere ballets this spring, all choreographed by company dancers.

The nonprofit ballet company previously announced a shift to digital programming to replace its originally scheduled in-person mixed repertoire performances. Carl Coomer’s The Story of You and Riley Moyano’s VREC will premiere in March, while Andre Silva’s Bloom and Jiyan Dai’s unnamed ballet will be available in April.

“COVID-19 disrupted our original plans for the spring, as it did for so many other organizations,” Executive Director Vanessa Logan said. “However, that disruption created an incredible opportunity for this group of dancer-choreographers. We look forward to sharing their creativity and innovation with our patrons.”

All four choreographers are creating their pieces specifically for film, straying from the traditional theater experience.

From left to right: Andre Silva, Jiyan Dai, Riley Moyano, and Carl Coomer
Photos courtesy of Texas Ballet Theater

TBT presented Coomer’s Henry VIII and Silva’s 11:11 in previous seasons. This is the first time the company will present works by Jiyan and Moyano.

“It’s amazing how arts organizations have found the positives in such a difficult time,” Artistic Director Ben Stevenson, O.B.E., said. “Through company projects, we recognized choreographic talent in our dancers. These programs are a wonderful way to display that.”

The programs will also be the company’s first opportunity to present new performances since Firebird in February 2020. Since the rise of COVID-19, TBT leadership has cancelled six in-person productions, causing a revenue loss of more than $3.5 million so far. TBT replaced its annual holiday production of The Nutcracker with a filmed version of the ballet from a previous year. The company shared this production with more than 44,000 patrons in homes, schools and hospitals, but without ticket sales for in-person performances, donations to the TBT Relief Fund now drive most of the company’s revenue.

Patrons can enjoy The Story of You and VREC March 18 – April 2, 2021, through the viewing portal on TBT’s website. Bloom and Jiyan’s piece will run April 15-30, 2021.

Tickets for each program are $30 per household and can be purchased by calling the Box Office at 877-828-9200 option 1 or by visiting www.texasballettheater.org. Patrons can also support the TBT Relief Fund on the organization’s website.