Ballet Quad Cities is a
ballet company
A ballet company is a type of dance troupe that performs classical ballet, neoclassical ballet, and/or contemporary ballet in the European tradition, plus managerial and support staff. Most major ballet companies employ dancers on a year-rou ...
located in
Rock Island, Illinois
Rock Island is a city in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. The population was 37,108 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located at the confluence of the Rock River (Mississippi River tributary), Rock a ...
. It was founded in 1996 by Joedy Cook. The company performs both classical and contemporary dance at various venues in the greater
Quad Cities
The Quad Cities is a region of five cities (originally Tri-Cities, later four, see #History, History) in the U.S. states of Iowa and Illinois: Davenport, Iowa, Davenport and Bettendorf, Iowa, Bettendorf (the fifth to be included) in southeaster ...
region of
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
and
Iowa
Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
.
History
Before its inception, Ballet Quad Cities was known as “Cassandra Manning Ballet Theatre,” under the direction of Susan Snider. Snider grew the arts in the Quad Cities before moving with her family to Des Moines, IA. At the time of its founding the company had one paid dancer. By 2010, the number of dancers who form the company grew to twelve dancers. The original artistic director was Johanne Jakhelln, who left the company in 2006 to return to her native
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
.
In April 2010 the company performed for the first time in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
at the Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theatre. The ballet’s
choreographer
Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which Motion (physics), motion or Visual appearance, form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A chor ...
, Deanna Carter, had been one of five choreographers to present their work at the annual Ballet Builders.
Ballet Quad Cities began a collaboration with
Orchestra Iowa starting in the 2012-2013 season.
Two performances featuring the two artistic groups are held in both the
Paramount Theatre in
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Cedar Rapids is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 137,710 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Iowa, second-most populous city in Iowa. The city lies o ...
, where Orchestra Iowa is based, and the
Adler Theatre in
Davenport, Iowa
Davenport ( ) is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. It is situated along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state. Davenport had a population of 101,724 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 cen ...
. The Adler is one of the ballet's primary venues. In 2021, BQC employs 1 male and 5 female dancers.
Dancers
The dancers of Ballet Quad Cities as of February, 2020:
*Nicholas Bartolotti
*Claire Cordano
*Maya de Leon
*Rachel Martens
*Meghan Phillips
*Elayne Podolske
*Madeleine Rhode
*Domingo Rubio* part time
*Malachi Squires
*Mahalia Zellmer
Ballet Quad Cities School of Dance
Ballet Quad Cities supports its own school of dance, which is also located in Rock Island. The schools philosophy is based on the principles of the
Vaganova method from
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
. Beside classical ballet, the school also teaches creative movement, pointe, character, repertoire, modern, jazz, hip-hop, conditioning, yoga, tap, rhythm tap and adult ballet.
See also
*
Quad City Symphony Orchestra
References
External links
*
Information about the Artistic StaffInformation about the dancers
Dance schools in the United States
Quad Cities
Tourist attractions in Rock Island, Illinois
Davenport, Iowa
Culture of the Quad Cities
1996 establishments in Illinois
Performing groups established in 1996
Dance in Illinois
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