-Courtesy of Bryan Buttler Media Relations, LLC
Chocolate Ballerina Company, a service organization which supports the hidden talents in youth and adult artists of color in the Philadelphia region, is making history this June, presenting the first ever all Black and Brown production of the classic ballet Swan Lake. The groundbreaking staging, called Black Swan: A Swan Lake Premiere, will make its world premiere at Philadelphia’s Independence Seaport Museum Theater on June 4, 2023 at 1:30PM.
“This production has been a major labor of love for Chocolate Ballerina Company,” said Chanel Holland, Founder and Artistic Director. “For months, our incredible dancers have worked diligently to prepare for Swan Lake, and I am thrilled to be making history, presenting what we believe to be the first ever staging of Tchaikovsky’s master work with an all Black and Brown cast.”
This highly-anticipated staging, which has been featured on NBC’s The Today Show, features Black and Brown dancers from Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York. Black Swan: A Swan Lake Premiere will feature all of the traditional elements of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, including choreography by Holland. 40 dancers will tell the tale of Prince Siegfried and Princess Odette, who transforms into a swan under the spell cast by sorcerer Baron von Rothbart. Odette’s days are spent on a lake only to return to her human form at night.
Holland’s Chocolate Ballerina Company has become well known for engaging underserved communities through dance, inspiring a sense of hope, discipline, and confidence through training and through professional development. Her previous production of The Nutcracker: Dipped in Chocolate has performed to sold out audiences in Philadelphia for two years. In addition to full-scale ballets, the company offers free and highly subsidized dance classes, outreach programs, pop-up performances, masterclasses, and more, both digitally and in-person.
Tickets ($50-$100) are currently on sale by visiting chocolateballerinacompany.com.
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