Connecticut Ballet to Present INSPIRING WOMEN Program of Work by Female Choreographers
This tribute to the artistry of female dancemakers will be performed Saturday, May 3 at 7:00pm at The Bushnell.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz Mar. 07, 2025
Connecticut Ballet’s Spring 2025 season will celebrate female ballet choreographers with INSPIRING WOMEN, a program of works exclusively commissioned by the company during its 44-year history. This tribute to the artistry of female dancemakers will be performed Saturday, May 3 at 7:00pm at The Bushnell in Hartford and Saturday, May 10 at 7:30pm at The Palace Theatre in Stamford.
About INSPIRING WOMEN
INSPIRING WOMEN will include a world premiere by Keerati Jinakunwiphat, the first Asian-American choreographer to create a work for New York City Ballet. The program also features revivals of Lila York’s 1990 piece Strays to Aaron Copland’s Clarinet Concerto, the 2021 work by former ballet mistress Eve Chan, The Open Road, based on the famous Walt Whitman poem of the same name, and former Connecticut Ballet dancer Carlyn Hudson’s 2022 humorous ballet, A Piece That Might Never Happen About a Peace That Might Never Happen to music by Franz Schubert.
In announcing the season’s final program, Artistic Director Brett Raphael pointed to the gender divide in the ballet world as an impetus for the company’s focus, stating, “It’s a statistical fact that women have been historically underrepresented as choreographers (and directors) in the repertoires of major ballet companies. In 2023/2024, women made up only 27.4% of the choreographers commissioned by U.S. ballet companies. Connecticut Ballet has always valued the work of talented female creators... This season, we celebrate their contribution and hold their work up for our audiences to appreciate.”
Tickets are available for Saturday, May 3 at 7:00pm at The Bushnell (166 Capitol Avenue, Hartford) at bushnell.org. Tickets are available for Saturday, May 10 at 7:30pm at The Palace Theatre (61 Atlantic Street, Stamford) palacestamford.org. For further information, visit connecticutballet.org.
In addition to the INSPIRING WOMEN program on Saturday May 3 at The Bushnell, Connecticut Ballet will be offering Family Matinee at the Ballet the same day at 11:00am. This fun-filled performance event is geared to children ages 3 to 10 and will feature an introductory mix of classical and newer pieces (different than the INSPIRING WOMEN program), as well as exciting interactive opportunities for kids and grown-ups alike. For more information, visit connecticutballet.org.
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