Dance Company
Aerial Dance Chicago is a nonprofit dance company dedicated to creation, performance, and instruction in the field of aerial dance. The mission of Aerial Dance Chicago is to enrich our community with the fine art of aerial dance. Through innovative choreography, engaging performances and energizing hands-on experiences, our programs educate, strengthen and connect people of all walks of life.
Aerial Dance Chicago inspires everyday people to challenge their own assumed limits to reveal undiscovered potential. Through highly original and physical programming, the company reawakens humanity’s craving for live, kinetic and creative experiences and contributes to the health and empowerment of the community.
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.
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.
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 Berkshire Ballet Theatre is Summers Academy of Dance’s pre-professional training program for motivated dancers 12-20 years old.
Students learn through technique classes and performances in a creative and disciplined environment. Intermediate 1 and 2 students begin the classical syllabus which requires students to work carefully with much repetition in order to isolate the correct muscle groups required for turn-out, extension, and a strong jump. When a student is ready pointe training begins. Character dance, modern dance and floor barre are also introduced into training. Berkshire Ballet Theatre trainees, apprentices, and company dancers continue advanced classical ballet training including classical variations, pas de deux, repetoire.
CDR is unique compared to other dance schools and programs in the composition of the “company”. CDR is composed of an elite group of local, talented, and dedicated students 10-18 years old. Company members become versatile dancers, taking classes and rehearsing in various styles of dance. Members take class and rehearse as a unit. There is a limited amount of dancers accepted to create more individual attention from the director/teachers and to create more opportunities for each dancer to grow technically and artistically. The dancers show their love and passion for dance through their work ethic in the studio and on stage. Members are recognized at competition and conventions, winning many scholarships and stand-out dancer awards.
Lead by artistic director Jessica Deahr, Chicago Dance Crash has emerged as the premier fusion-style contemporary dance company in the Midwest. Emphasizing a unique mission of both athleticism and accessibility, the Crash aesthetic is most notably recognized by its combination of concert and hip hop techniques in works ranging from full length productions to repertory pieces and freestyles.
Based in Madison, Wisconsin, Cycropia was formed in 1989 and is one of the oldest continuously-operating aerial dance troupes within the United States. Using single-point trapeze, bungee, lyra, aerial fabric and custom steel apparatus, Cycropia combines modern dance, athleticism and the magic of defying gravity. Cycropia’s mission is to foster artistic expression and creative movement through aerial dance, education, performance and other community-building activities.
Dance Wisconsin is a regional dance company that promotes excellence in the art of dance. The company presents high-quality productions featuring dancers from all over southern Wisconsin and guest artists from professional companies around the world. These productions not only offer the opportunity for young people to explore new heights, but also to learn teamwork, commitment and a sense of pride in accomplishing something truly extraordinary. Dance Wisconsin is the state’s only Honor Company in Midstates Regional Dance America.
Dance Wisconsin provides the vehicle for young dancers to go beyond their studio dance experience and learn more about their art form while making valuable connects in the dance world at a professional and collegiant level. Dance Wisconsin offers dedicated dancers the opportunity to train at a high level to achieve their goals whether they are simply to be the best dancer they can be or if they wish to pursue dancing beyond High School. Dance Wisconsin offers them the training and opportunities to help make anything happen.
DanceCircus celebrates over 40 years of inspiring, challenging,and entertaining performances marked by artistry, clarity, elegance, and simplicity. Artistic Director Betty Salamun weaves together movement, words, and music to create dances of power and meaning for audiences of all ages. Working with award winning poets, musicians, and visual artists she creates interdisciplinary performances. These collaborative performances incorporate non-dancers, students, people in agencies and diverse performers connecting the creative process of DanceCircus with life and work in the community.