DANCE DATA PROJECT® TO RELEASE PART 2 OF GLOBAL CONVERSATIONS SERIES, FEATURING THE BALLET WORLD’S TOP LEADERS AND THEIR METHODS FOR CRISIS NAVIGATION

Northfield, IL | July 23, 2020 Dance Data Project® (DDP) today announced the release of Global Conversations – Navigating Challenging Times, the second round in a series of virtual interviews. Round 2 features artistic directors, executive directors, and CEOs of some of the most globally esteemed ballet companies.

Navigating Challenging Times provides a platform for the female leaders (and male allies) who are stewarding organizations through an unprecedented health and economic crisis that has disproportionately affected women and people of color. These leaders embody the unique skill sets and initiative required to successfully manage, and in some cases step into, an arts organization during especially turbulent times.

While the rest of the world begins its gradual reopening, theater doors remain closed with seats and stages empty. Through interviews conducted by DDP Founder and President, Liza Yntema, the series offers a glimpse into the current state of ballet performance and how today’s leaders are traversing its new landscape.

“Global Conversations was created to give a voice to wide-ranging viewpoints within the ballet industry,” said Yntema. “The leaders featured in this second round represent small towns and large cities, budgets that vary in size, and tenures ranging from a few months to decades.”

The roster includes Jennifer Archibald (Arch Dance Company), Melissa Barak (Barak Ballet), Patricia Barker (Royal New Zealand Ballet), Bridget Breiner (Badisches Staatsballett Karlsruhe), Tyrone Brooks (Tallahassee Ballet), Christine Cox (BalletX), Susan Jaffe (Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre), Ingrid Lorentzen (Norwegian National Ballet), Tamara Rojo (English National Ballet), and Kelly Tweeddale (San Francisco Ballet).

“The Global Conversations programming serves as more than entertainment to our audiences,” said DDP Director of Research Isabelle Vail. “These interviews reflect the collected knowledge and wisdom of some of the luminaries of dance, and provide insight for foundations and companies considering their role in pursuing a more just, viable art form. Topics range from supporting women choreographers, to adjusting organizational strategy during the coming months, to insights on the outlook for the art form and the future of these organizations as cultural institutions.”

Global Conversations – Navigating Challenging Times will premiere on Instagram TV. Episodes will also appear on DDP’s website and YouTube. Episodes will be released every weekday for two weeks beginning Monday, July 27. DDP is continuing its in-depth research of the industry and later this year will release its comprehensive 2019-2020 Season Overview, a statistical examination of choreographer gender within the seasons of the Top 50 U.S. companies.

View our trailer for the next interviews below: