On April 28th, for the first time, Kansas City Ballet’s Second Company headlined their own show at home at the Bolender Center called, appropriately, @ Home. This program was performed again a week later at 1900 Building off of Shawnee Mission Parkway.
In an interview, KC Ballet’s Second Company Manager Anthony Krutzkamp had this to say:
For me, what was great about this show was seeing the growth of the dancers through this season. I couldn’t help but think about how far they have come since KC Dance Day (Aug. 27, 2016)! I believe for others watching the show it would be the diversity of the program. They performed everything from classical to contemporary that night.
How does this experience help these dancers grow? What are you hoping they are getting out of this experience? Putting the Second Company in a position to “carry” an evening by themselves puts them on a platform (and pressure) that the company members experience. They are coached in principal/soloist roles and have to embody those roles in front of an audience, with lights, and costumes. My hope is that when they do transition to a company they will have this experience to pull from and will have the confidence to do well!
How did you put this program together? What were your reasons for these works in this order? The contemporary part of the show came from all of our work this season with different galleries and museums around town. I set the classical portion to fit our dancers strengths and weaknesses. The order of the program was made with necessity and flow. I needed to make sure 15 dancers were safe for that amount of time dancing while giving the best ebb and flow for the evening.
Anything else you’d like to share about this group and/or this season of work/experiences?
I am amazingly proud of this group. They pulled off some great shows and gained some real fans this season.
What do you look forward to next season?
I am hoping to get out in our community even more! I don’t see the second company slowing down anytime soon!
