Ballet Hispánico Continues 2024 Season, Returns to American Dance Festival

Ballet Hispánico, the nation’s largest Latine/x/Hispanic dance organization recognized as one of America’s Cultural Treasures, continues their 2023/24 season with a return to American Dance Festival at Duke University. Performances will take place on Thursday, June 13 at 7pm and Sunday, June 16 at 3pm at Page Auditorium, Duke University, with a post-performance discussion on Thursday. A Children’s Matinee performance will also take place on Saturday, June 15 at 1pm. Tickets start at $18.

Originally created in 2010 for her first full company work, in House of Mademoiselle, internationally-acclaimed choreographer Annabelle Lopez Ochoa takes us on a wild romp through a campy world that explores iconic female representations found in Latin American culture. From femme fatales to the delicate language of fans, boas, and Latin dance, the work highlights how the culture is enamored and obsessed with the iconic high-octane female stars of past and present; Gustavo Ramírez Sansano’s 18+1, a fun romp through some of Pérez Prado’s iconic big band hits with Ramírez’s signature athletic movement vocabulary; and Buscando a Juan (Searching for Juan), Eduardo Vilaro’s new work, commissioned by The Metropolitan Museum of Art and inspired by their exhibition of Juan de Pareja, Afro-Hispanic Painter, is a layered and immersive piece inspired by the life of Juan de Pareja, the Afro-Hispanic painter who was enslaved in Spanish painter Diego Velázquez’s studio for over two decades before becoming an artist in his own right. The work is a thought-provoking homage to the nuanced dance of shared vulnerability and intimate collaboration among artists that redefines the boundaries of individual creativity, beckoning us to question the very essence of artistic identity.

Thursday, June 13, 2024 at 7pm

Page Auditorium at Duke University

https://americandancefestival.org/event/ballet-hispanico-2/2024-06-13/

Saturday, June 15, 2024 at 1pm

Page Auditorium at Duke University

https://americandancefestival.org/event/ballet-hispanico-childrens-matinee-2/

Sunday, June 16, 2024 at 3pm

Page Auditorium at Duke University

https://americandancefestival.org/event/ballet-hispanico-2/2024-06-16/

About Ballet Hispánico

Ballet Hispánico was founded on the principle that everyone deserves dance, quality dance training and innovative performances. In creating the company in 1970, National Medal of Arts recipient Tina Ramirez shattered a glass ceiling—challenging iconic representations and exposing the joy and celebration to be found in Latindad. Despite its humble origins, Ballet Hispánico immediately served as a catalyst for people in the Latine/x/Hispanic community, especially for Latino youth, to follow their dreams in the cultural world.

Today, as the largest Latino cultural organization in the United States and one of America’s Cultural Treasures, Ballet Hispánico’s three main programs, the Company, School of Dance, and Community Arts Partnerships bring together communities to celebrate the ever growing and multifaceted Hispanic diasporas. Ballet Hispánico’s New York City headquarters provide the space and cultural heart for Latinx dance in the United States. It is a space that expands on Ramirez’s original vision by providing our community the ability to train through dedicated scholarship opportunities, exceptional dance training, inclusive cultural dialogues, and exemplary performances. No matter their background or identity, Ballet Hispánico welcomes and serves all, breaking stereotypes and celebrating the beauty and diversity of Hispanic cultures through dance.

Eduardo Vilaro joined Ballet Hispánico as a Company dancer in 1985 and became the organization’s second Artistic Director in 2009 and CEO in 2015. Vilaro is building on Ramirez’s impact: expanding and deepening a legacy of showcasing the depth of our cultures, and exposing the intersectionality found in the Hispanic diasporas by focusing on nurturing Hispanic leaders. Through programs like the Instituto Coreográfico, the Latinx Leaders Summit and Diálogos, Ballet Hispánico has become a center for artistic leadership development.