Dance Companies
Lucky Plush Productions is an ensemble dance-theater company based in Chicago, led by founder and Artistic Director Julia Rhoads. The company is committed to provoking and supporting an immediacy of presence—a palpable live-ness—shared by performers in real time with audiences. A unique hybrid of high-level dance and theater, Lucky Plush’s work is recognized for its layered choreography, nuanced dialogue, surprising humor, and socially relevant content.
Same Planet Different World Dance Theatre is a contemporary-based repertory company that presents the work of its Artistic Director and other choreographers, both established and emerging. The Company strives to present choreography that can support a humanistic voice while remaining in the physical world where dance is the primary ingredient; using the full moving body for expression. The Company maintains an ever-evolving body of work that is driven by theatricality, athleticism, tenacity and accessibility for its audience.
Same Planet Different World Dance Theatre (SPDW), led by artistic director Joanna Rosenthal, is a Chicago-based contemporary dance ensemble that has built a strong reputation for work that is evocative, entertaining and engaging. SPDW has received critical acclaim for its varied repertory and powerful performers. SPDW presents the choreography of artists from across the country, both seasoned veterans as well as up-and-coming innovators, with styles that range from classical to post-modern dance. The diverse spectrum of work can range from humorous satire to high-octane virtuosity, but never ceases to delight audiences with performances that are dynamic and inspiring. Contributing artists include Peter Carpenter, Faye Driscoll, Jan Erkert, Carl Flink, Ashleigh Leite, Molly Shanahan, Jeff Hancock, Shirley Mordine, Sam Watson, Shapiro and Smith Dance and to name a few.
Ballet Minnesota is a nonprofit, Saint Paul-based professional dance company established in 1988 by Andrew and Cheyl Rist. It functions as the performing company of the Classical Ballet Academy, its official school. Ballet Minnesota’s founding vision was to create a dance organization serving the Twin Cities and surrounding areas, dedicated to creating an understanding and enjoyment of the dance arts through performance of the classic repertoire and exploration of new works.
The company approaches movement as a process of investigation, rather than thinking of dance as a vocabulary of actions. While MamLuft&Co. Dance works to make Modern Dance accessible to the general population, ML&Co. also challenges pre-conceived notions of what dance is by searching for authentic, organic, and original movement. MamLuft&Co. Dance’s explorations are led by director Jeanne Sopanha Mam-Luft, whose personal history informs the company processes, as an immigrant and refugee of the Khmer Rouge genocide, as well as an interdisciplinarian of design, architecture, photography, and video.
Ballet Quad Cities is one of our Midwest region’s premiere arts organizations. Launched as a professional dance company in 1996 by Founding Executive Director Joedy Cook, Ballet Quad Cities has garnered critical praise for its stunning performances. Ballet Quad Cities is the longest-running resident professional ballet company in the entire state of Iowa and western Illinois, one of only 100 in the nation. Our award winning performances and interactive school and community programs are accessible for everyone. Each year we touch over 25,000 people with the amazing, athletic and entertaining art of dance.
The Joel Hall Dancers express contemporary urban life through dance while educating, entertaining, and inspiring their audience. The signature dance style of JHD incorporates ballet, jazz, modern, funk, and “street dance” using contemporary jazz and house music to create an innovative and continuously evolving dance style that is appealing, relevant, and approachable for those frequently underserved by the arts.
The Joel Hall Dancers maintain a citywide, national, and international reputation, not only for their diversity and innovation, but also for their substantive sociological content and engaging aesthetic style. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Joel Hall, the Joel Hall Dancers have carried their unique yet universally accessible voice to venues that span the world.
Both JHD and its audience exhibit a rare diversified spectrum of cultural, ethnic, racial, and socio-economic backgrounds.
Critically acclaimed for their athletic, sensual and dynamic repertoire River North Dance Chicago presents dynamic works that combine athletic prowess and artistic perspective with bold, theatrical flair. Founded in 1989 and under the artistic leadership of Frank Chaves, RNDC demonstrates depth and sophistication with a commitment to creating an accessible, enriching experience for audiences. The company continues to make a name for themselves on the world stage traveling throughout the country and internationally. Core works by Chaves are augmented with an array of pieces by renowned choreographers including Mauro Astolfi, Adam Barruch, Robert Battle, Sidra Bell, Ashley Roland and Nejla Yatkin, among others.
For more than 50 years, Giordano Dance Chicago has brought the excitement of American jazz dance to audiences throughout the United States and in countries around the world — including Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland, Russia, the Bahamas, Brazil, Turkey, Canada, Mexico, and Japan. GDC serves as host performing company at Jazz Dance World Congress, which has been held at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., at the University at Buffalo, in Japan, Germany, Mexico, Costa Rica, Phoenix, Point Park University in Pittsburgh, and Chicago.
Rockford Dance Company is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation. Its mission is to pursue excellence in the art of dance through performance, education and outreach.
The performance component of Rockford Dance Company includes a pre-professional company. The company offers several season performances each year and tours locally. Rockford Dance Company performs at various venues throughout the Rockford Community.
Additionally, Rockford Dance Company is devoted to sharing the many benefits of dance with the Rockford community. As part of its outreach program, Rockford Dance Company develops diverse dance programming in partnership with many area organizations, including Stepping Stones of Rockford, Rockford Park District, Rockford Area Arts Council, and Rockford Public Schools.
Founded in 2012, Ballet 5:8 a 501-(c)-3 nonprofit arts organization. With a growing roster of professional dancers and a repertoire of all-new classical and contemporary works, Ballet 5:8 performs in a variety of settings across Chicago and the U.S. in addition to teaching workshops and master classes. Ballet 5:8’s performances combine the athleticism and beauty of professional dance with a commitment to practical communication and understandability. This brings performances out of the abstract, elitism of some art forms and into the hearts and minds of everyday people.