World-renowned Joffrey Ballet and Betsy Blackmon Dance Company will put on a performance of "Le Beaufoons" and "All that Remains" on April 5 in collaboration with USC's School of Dance and Symphony Orchestra.
Joffrey Ballet is a dance company based in Chicagobut on March 17, the ballet left the Windy City for the Palmetto State for a rare 3-week residency in Columbia, running until April 5.
The company has done visitations in the past, but this marks their first multi-week residency.
University President Michael Amiridis and his wife, Ero Aggelopoulou-Amiridis, conceptualized the collaboration two years ago after visiting Chicago. Their time in the city lead to a strong relationship with the Joffrey Balley leadership, according to Jennifer Deckert, director of the Betsy Blackman Dance Company and program director.
Deckert spoke with other company leadership, and together they developed the concept of a 3-week residency, she said.
“Joffrey Ballet is one of the world-renowned ballet companies, one of the best in the United States," Deckert said. "They don’t tour a whole lot, they don’t do residencies like this ever, so having them here on campus and then performing is really special."
Joffrey has brought in some of their dancers and leaders to collaborate with the Blackmon dance company through technical dance classes and show preparation, which will be accompanied by the USC Symphony Orchestra.
Greyson Sherman, a junior at USC and second violin in the orchestra, said that the show is extra meaningful as she'll be performing with her twin sister Olivia Sherman, a member of the Betsy Blackmon dance company.
“I knew that I’d have this opportunity to perform with my twin and I was so excited because this would be the trifecta for my parents, right, they get to see me, they get to see her, and they get to see Joffrey Ballet which is one of the world's most famous dance companies," said Sherman. "I’m thrilled and honored, as well, to be performing alongside my fellow musicians but also the world's best dancers.”
Nicolas Blanc, the rehearsal director for Joffrey Ballet, created two works for the April 5th performance: "Le Boeufoons", a larger piece that will bring together dancers from both companies, and "All that Remains", a trio. In preparation for the performance, he is working with dancers from both Joffrey and Blackmon to showcase his pieces and advance both his and the students' artistic journeys, he said.
Company member Ao Wang executes an arabesque in rehearsal on April 2, 2025. The Joffrey Ballet company in Chicago has been training dancers for 69 years.
Blanc said that the new environment has helped challenge his creativity in more ways than one.
“Le Boeufoons” is a very different piece that I usually do in terms of style and dance vocabulary. It’s much more theatrical," Blanc said. "So for me, it’s sort of the perfect opportunity to venture and tackle something that's going to be different for my creativity, for my creative self. I feel like I can venture into what I call unknown territories.”
Students and directors alike will also be working to give the audience a program of diverse works, USC Symphony Orchestra Director Scott Weiss said.
Whether it is music by composers Giuseppe Variti or Antonio Vivaldi , Weiss said that the pieces involved hold a certain significance to aspects of the show.
“You have some real classical music and some more contemporary music. Some classical, historical choreography as well as some brand new premier choreography, and so somebody coming to the concert is going to see and hear a lot of variety," he said. “You have some real classical music and some more contemporary music. Some classical, historical choreography as well as some brand new premier choreography, and so somebody coming to the concert is going to see and hear a lot of variety," he said.
The show has given the orchestra a chance to display their talents on with a premier ballet company, Weiss said
Deckert shared a similar sentiment, noting that Joffrey is not only bringing in their company for a performance, but to give USC dancers an opportunity to see how they can grow.
“I think the big thing is for them (USC dancers) to see what a professional ballet company looks like and how they function, for them to see those artists in rehearsal and in class and recognize that that can be a dream of theirs this can be a goal that they achieve," Deckert said.
Deckert said that community engagement is the cornerstone of the entire residency, which expands beyond the performance.
Throughout the week leading up to the performance, the Joffrey Ballet went beyond the Koger stage by hosting community-centered dance events to involve both the Joffrey and Columbia communities, Deckert said.
The Joffrey community engagement team provided the Columbia Parkinson's support group with a free ballet movement class as part of their Dancing with Parkinson's initiative, an ongoing collaboration with Northwestern University Medicine that helps people with Parkinson's disease stay active through dance.
Further collaboration included public dance classes, visits to local schools and senior centers and joint workshops at the USC School of Dance.
The company is also finishing the week off on Saturday, April 5 at Soda City, Columbia's outdoor market on Main Street with an event outside of the Columbia Art Museum where they will be teaching outdoor dance classes to the public of all ages.
“I think it only further enriches the cultural life of the city as well of course the campus to have a company like this not only come through, but actually be here for three weeks," Weiss said.
Ticket prices for range from $45-$80 and can be purchased at kogercenterforthearts.com