The all-male ballet troupe shatters gender stereotypes with premiere of Breaking Ground Rachel Howard December 17, 2020Updated: December 19, 2020, 12:42 am
Evan Ambrose and Duane Gosa rehearse a pas de deux from “Swan Lake,” part of Ballet22’s inaugural streaming performances. Photo: Ballet22
Over the summer, as the isolation of the pandemic wore on, Roberto Vega Ortiz posted a video of himself dancing in satin pointe shoes on Instagram, with the hashtag #maleballerinas. Soon, men from around the world were posting videos with the same hashtag, sharing footage of themselves sometimes bare-chested and sometimes in tutus dancing en pointe in Mexico, Germany, Brazil, Chile and throughout the U.S.
The program, titled Breaking Ground, premieres December 11, will include a modern take on the
Sugar Plum Pas de Deux from
The Nutcracker; Juntos, a neo-classical work by Cincinnati Ballet Soloist Joshua Stayton; and a world premiere by Artistic Director of Boca Tuya, Omar Román de Jesús. We were able to produce our first digital performance by flying in dancers and choreographers from around the country to safely quarantine together for the rehearsal and filming process, said Executive Director Thereasa Knudson.
The roster of performers includes: Evan Ambrose (formerly Alabama Ballet), Gilbert Bolden III (New York City Ballet), Ashton Edwards (Pacific Northwest Ballet Professional Division), Duane Gosa (Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo), Christopher Kaiser (Oregon Ballet Theatre), Donghoon Lee (Diablo Ballet, formerly Korea National Ballet), and Roberto Vega Ortiz (Diablo Ballet, formerly Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo).