VAF: Bringing ballet to new audiences

Thursday, March 7, 7:30 pm

It promises to be a moving experience.

More than 1,000 high school students will descend on Norfolk for the Regional High School Dance Festival this week. One of the thrilling highlights of that visit for these talented and highly motivated young people will be the opportunity to see and study with the critically acclaimed Collage Dance Collective.

Established in 2006 to address a lack of racial diversity on the ballet stage, Collage is one the few professional ballet companies in the world with a roster of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) dancers. They thrill audiences with great performances and inspire a love of dance in students. As Pointe Magazine says, Collage is making ballet “relevant, relatable, and rooted… with scores from Tchaikovsky to Aretha Franklin and dancers from French Guiana to Brazil.”

Now they’re bringing their powerful performances to Norfolk as part of the Virginia Arts Festival. Partnering with The Governor’s School for the Arts, the Virginia Arts Festival will welcome 1,200 students to the Chrysler Hall performance and bring Collage Dance Collective artists to master classes with schools throughout Hampton Roads.

Collage’s public performance takes place in the evening. Good seats are still available. Order online at vafest.org.