The box office popularity of a new rock ballet set to music by pop star Prince has rescued the financially ailing Joffrey Ballet, officials say.
The company took in nearly $1 million during its recent New York engagement, which will go a long way toward wiping out Joffrey's large deficit, said Cecil C. Conner, the company's executive director.Conner told United Press International that much of the credit must go to "Billboards," a full evening dance performance set to 14 songs by rock star Prince.
"Billboards" was the backbone of the two-week Lincoln Center engagement that ended April 17. It featured nine performances compared to six for two programs of mixed repertory dances. The cost to the Joffrey of mounting its first performances in Manhattan since 1991 was a risky $850,000.
"We took in close to $1 million, and our audience generally was about 70 percent of capacity," Conner said.
"That pays for the engagement, but the receipts from one season can never wipe out the deficit, which generally is reduced by corporate, foundation and individual donations. The deficit will stand about $1.2 million to $1.4 million this year, having been reduced by about $1 million in the past two years."
The Joffrey's finances have been precarious since founder Robert Joffrey died in 1988. Financial troubles have plagued most dance groups in recent years. Co-founder Gerald Arpino assumed command of the company but found bookings getting scarcer and donations harder to come by.
The New York engagement was sponsored by Citibank, now one of Joffrey's top contributors along with Philip Morris, the New York State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. Philip Morris is sponsoring the company's current U.S and Canadian tour of 14 cities, which will continue in Cleveland this week.
"Billboards" is a showy, athletic work, more style than substance, that was inspired by contemporary poster art that some dance fans find inimical to a classic ballet company. But the Joffrey has always had a reputation for dancing in eclectic styles and exploring new dance forms.
Choreographers who contributed to "Billboards" were avante-gardists Laura Dean, Charles Moulton, Margo Sappington and Peter Pucci.
"This ballet has had marvelous audience response and created visibility for the company," Conner said.
"People are attending the Joffrey who are not normally in our audience - a younger audience of single and married people between 18 and 35. And they aren't just seeing `Billboards.' They see our other programs, too," Conner said.
Since "Billboards" had its premiere in Iowa City early last year, it has been performed to 200,000 people in 16 cities and generated $2.5 million in income for the company, whose current annual budget is $9 million, Conner said. The company is dancing 40 weeks this year, compared to 32 last year.
Success has allowed the Joffrey to attract 12 influential new members to its board and given it access to new sources of financing, Conner added.