Kansas City Ballet and UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance to
Partner on Benefit Performances for
The Salvation Army and Kansas City Free Health Clinic

KANSAS CITY, MO (March 4, 2009) – In an arts and educational partnership, Kansas City Ballet and the UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance will present performances March 24–25 to benefit The Salvation Army and the Kansas City Free Health Clinic. These performances will help to support The Salvation Army and the Kansas City Free Health Clinic, as well as, the university’s dance training program, and also will give their patrons the opportunity to experience an evening of dance. Curtain time is 7:30 p.m. each evening at White Recital Hall at UMKC. The Conservatory has generously donated the hall for these events.

All proceeds raised at these two performances will benefit the charities’ missions. The Salvation Army plans to use donations from the March 24th performance to benefit those who are suffering from the economic downturn. The Kansas City Free Health Clinic will use the funds raised from the March 25th performance to help provide free medical services to those residents in need. The public is invited to attend both performances, with reservations being available, depending on the evening preferred, from each organization.

“For years, the Kansas City Ballet and the Conservatory have been partners. In these challenging times, artistic and educational collaborations like ours become even more vital. We celebrate Jeff Bentley, Bill Whitener, and James Jordan. Through their creativity, we are able to bring the KCB and the Conservatory together,” said Peter Witte, dean of UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance, University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Service to the community has been a part of Kansas City Ballet’s mission throughout its 51-year history. With “Ballet in the Park” performances, the elementary school program called ROAD (“Reach Out and Dance”), pre-performance talks by the artistic director, and numerous other educational and lecture/demonstration events, Kansas City Ballet is always seeking new ways to share the artistry of ballet both on the stage and in the community.

“Seizing this opportunity to serve not only this art form and its audiences, but other essential, local not for profit organizations and educational institutions is an important aspect of our mission,” said Kansas City Ballet Executive Director Jeffrey J. Bentley. “We are thrilled the planets aligned allowing us the creative time and artist availability to partner with these important resources using our unique skills.”

This partnership provides opportunities for audiences to make a difference in the lives of Kansas Citians.

“We are so pleased to partner with the Kansas City Ballet on this wonderful event,” said Major Dorothy Smith, divisional director of women’s ministries for The Salvation Army. “Over the past year, we have experienced a large increase in the number of people seeking our help and we deeply appreciate the support of the Ballet as we try to meet the needs of those who are suffering in our community.”

The Dance Program
Titled “Pointes of View: The Art of Dance,” these informal, narrated performances offer audiences a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse inside the world of ballet performance, featuring the women of Kansas City Ballet plus select UMKC dance students. Using only simple lighting, costumes, and recorded music, this 60- to 75-minute program also features Ballet Artistic Director William Whitener or Ballet Master James Jordan introducing the ballets, placing each in a historical context and explaining its relevance to the Kansas City Ballet repertoire.

Excerpts from a number of ballets—featuring the music of Gershwin, Haydn, Mahler, Brahms and others—will be performed and will represent a gamut of renowned choreographers such as Todd Bolender (Coppelia, Celebration), 2008 Kennedy Center Honors award winner Twyla Tharp (Brahms Paganini, As Time Goes By), Antony Tudor (Dark Elegies), Isadora Duncan (The Many Faces of Love), and William Whitener (Caprice).

Some excerpts are from ballets seen in Kansas City Ballet’s critically praised March 2008 performances at the prestigious Joyce Theater in New York City. According to Back Stage those performances were, “The most choreographically adventurous and aesthetically diverse evening at the ballet in New York this season.” And, the New York Post said of Kansas City Ballet, “It’s a lively, stylish company, and we would welcome a return visit.”

Reservation Info
Kansas City Ballet and UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance
Benefit for The Salvation Army | Tuesday, March 24, 7:30 p.m.
Visit www.salarmy-mokan.org to reserve seats.

Kansas City Ballet and UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance
Benefit for The Kansas City Free Health Clinic | Wednesday, March 25, 7:30 p.m.
For more information or to reserve seats, call Sally at 816-777-1595.

An RSVP is requested to assure seating. Free will donations will be accepted the night of the event
and will benefit either The Salvation Army on March 24th or The Kansas City Free Health Clinic on March 25th.

About Kansas City Ballet
Founded in 1957, Kansas City Ballet is a 26-member professional ballet company under the direction of Artistic Director William Whitener and Executive Director Jeffrey J. Bentley. The company’s mission is to offer dance experiences of the highest quality to our community, region and profession. The Kansas City Ballet also is home to the Kansas City Ballet School for nearly 600 children and adults, offering professional training for the career-minded student as well as for those seeking a healthy lifestyle. Through our professional company, school and community outreach programs such as ROAD, Project X, and Dance INFORMances, we seek to nurture and develop our artists, audiences and students in the creativity, diversity and joy of dance. For more information, visit www.kcballet.org.

About the Conservatory
The UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance has earned national and international recognition through its music and dance performance, composition, teaching and scholarship. The most comprehensive music and dance educational center in the Midwest since 1906, the Conservatory boasts more than 80 faculty widely recognized as world-class scholars, artists, teachers and leaders in their fields. For more information, visit www.umkc.edu/conservatory.

About The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army, an evangelical part of the universal Christian church, has been supporting those in need in His name without discrimination since 1865. Nearly 33 million Americans receive assistance from The Salvation Army each year through the broadest array of social services that range from providing food for the hungry, relief for disaster victims, assistance for the disabled, outreach to the elderly and ill, clothing and shelter to the homeless and opportunities for underprivileged children. About 83 cents of every dollar raised is used to support those services in nearly 9,000 communities nationwide. For more information, go to http://www.salarmy-mokan.org.

About Kansas City Free Health Clinic
Since 1971, the Kansas City Free Health Clinic has been creating solutions for a healthy community by promoting health and wellness and providing quality services, at no charge, to people without access to basic care. For more information, please visit www.kcfree.org.

Kansas City Ballet | UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance
March 24-25, 2009 Performance at a Glance

Pointes of View: The Art of Dance
UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance
White Recital Hall
James C. Olson Performing Arts Center
4949 Cherry Street
Kansas City, Missouri

Choreographers include: Todd Bolender, Twyla Tharp, Anthony Tudor, William Whitener and more!
Performances by the women of Kansas City Ballet and select UMKC dance students.

Reservation Info
Kansas City Ballet and UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance
Benefit for The Salvation Army | Tuesday, March 24, 7:30 p.m.
Visit www.salarmy-mokan.org to reserve seats.

Kansas City Ballet and UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance
Benefit for The Kansas City Free Health Clinic | Wednesday, March 25, 7:30 p.m.
For more information or to reserve seats, call Sally at 816-777-1595.

There is no charge to reserve seats. Free will donations will be accepted the night of the event and will benefit either The Salvation Army on March 24th or The Kansas City Free Health Clinic on March 25th.

Program is subject to change.

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