Press Release

CHICAGO, October 15, 2007 –The Joffrey Ballet will tour to Florida for the first time since 2001. The three-city tour (January 16-21, 2008) will bring the company to three cities: West Palm Beach, Naples and Sarasota, where they will perform The Joffrey’s extremely popular Cool Vibrations program. The program is made up of three ballets: Deuce Coupe, Sometimes it Snows in April, and Motown Suite. Originally choreographed in 1973 by Twyla Tharp for The Joffrey and using music from The Beach Boys, Deuce Coupe juxtaposes the ballet vocabulary that has evolved over 300 years with another vocabulary loosely based on the social dances of the 1960s and 1970s. Sometimes is Snows in April, an excerpt from the groundbreaking Billboards ballet, combines Laura Dean’s signature choreography with music by Prince in a dazzling and elegant mix of classical dance and pulsing rock. The Joffrey Ballet will also present Donald Byrd’s Motown Suite. This is Mr. Byrd’s first creation for The Joffrey Ballet and has become a part of our permanent repertoire. Mr. Byrd’s ballet continues in the tradition of pairing ballet and popular music established by Deuce Coupe and Sometimes it Snows in April, using classic Motown hits to explore human relationships and socially relevant themes.

The Joffrey’s three-city Florida tour will include one performance, Wednesday, January 16, 2008, at The Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach; one performance, Friday, January 18, 2008 at the Philharmonic Center for the Arts in Naples; and one performance, Monday, January 21, 2008 at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall in Sarasota.

The Joffrey Ballet Chairman of the Board of Directors, Maureen Dwyer Smith, and Artistic Director, Ashley Wheater, will host three pre-performance events in each city.

The Joffrey Ballet is proud to partner with Harris Private Bank as they serve as the Exclusive Sponsor of The Joffrey’s 2008 Florida Tour, Cool Vibrations.   

“This will be an amazing event for Florida, bringing together works that are culturally relevant and present an exciting artistic vision,” said Pamela Dean, Florida regional president of Harris Private Bank. “We’re honored to be able to enrich the communities we serve through our support of The Joffrey Ballet.”

For more information about The Joffrey Ballet, please visit www.joffrey.com.