New York City, NY (February 18, 2022) – The Joffrey Ballet School will partner with Los Angeles based contemporary ballet company, BalletRED, for an apprenticeship program open to dancers ages 14-19. A daily training ground for classical and contemporary dance fused with experience in a professional company will create the JoffreyRED Contemporary Ballet Apprenticeship Program, with its first season this Fall 2022. 

Internationally acclaimed Artistic Director, choreographer, and instructor, Josie Walsh, will lead this small, hand-selected group of elite dancers from around the world. “The Program is about creating a space that encourages exploration and pushes the boundaries of creativity”, Walsh states.

Dancers will “become the company”, studying Monday through Friday in techniques intended to prepare them for the cutting-edge repertoire BalletRED has brought to the stage. A strong classical foundation will start each day with technique classes, Pointe and Partnering, while afternoons will expand into genres including Contemporary, Modern, Gaga, and Improvisation.

Nine choreographic residencies per season will bring the brightest talents choreographing in the worlds of concert and commercial dance directly to the dancers. Students will be mentored by these leaders in the industry, training in their unique contemporary techniques and experiencing their process for creating an original work. Each will premiere as a part of three fully-produced performances each season, created and performed exclusively by the dancers of JoffreyRED.

Dancers who have auditioned for the 2022 Joffrey Ballet School Summer Intensives will be considered for the JoffreyRED Contemporary Ballet Apprenticeship Program. Walsh will invite a select group of dancers, based on the recommendations of our Artistic Directors and Master Faculty currently touring the country, to submit a video. A small group will be selected to train year-round with JoffreyRED and invited to become an apprentice with the BalletRED company, beginning this September.

Executive Director of Joffrey Ballet School Frank Lee Merwin shares “Walsh has had a long and successful history with the Joffrey Ballet School – performing with the company in New York, before returning to choreograph and curate three of her own Summer Intensives. Her style is distinctive and the perfect fit for a dancer training at the Joffrey Ballet School. We are honored to partner with Walsh and BalletRED, to provide this opportunity for students to train and develop professional experience with her company.”

All dancers accepted during our 2022 Summer Audition Tour can attend the JoffreyRED Contemporary Ballet Summer Intensive, coming to Cal State University, Northridge July 5 to 15, 2022. Experience what will come to life this Fall, in an intensive built on the framework of the Apprentice Program.

Read more about the JoffreyRED Contemporary Ballet Apprenticeship Program at http://www.joffreyballetschool.com/joffreyred.