ABOUT THE ASSOCIATION
The Ballet Association of Rio de Janeiro (ABRJ) is a non-profit cultural entity. Founded in 1956 by Dalal Achcar, Márcia Kubitschek and Maria Luisa Noronha, the Association has dedicated itself, throughout all these years, to the teaching and training of new dancers, in its different modalities and levels. In addition, it was the main responsible for the precious movement of popularization of ballet in Brazil. Considered of Federal and State Public Utility, the Association has as main objectives the promotion and dissemination of the Art of Dance.
In addition to the various seasons it has carried out with his company, it is dedicated to teaching and training dancers in all different dance modalities. The Ballet Association of Rio de Janeiro can be considered one of the institutions that work the most for the development of ballet in Brazil.
Its international season promotions marked an era in our country's artistic calendar. In 1974 it performed the first production of the Ballet “The Nutcracker", by Tchaikovsky in Brazil, in its full version, with the participation of 180 Brazilian dancers, in addition to great names of international ballet. Today "The Nutcracker" in that same version it is presented annually in the year-end season at the Theatro Municipal and is the "flagship" of its box office.
One of the most daring achievements of the Ballet Association of Rio de Janeiro during 1978 was the two concerts presented at Botafogo Beach, in Rio de Janeiro, on the occasion of the Carioca Tourism Week. With more than 80 dancers, the ballet “Romeu and Juliete” was presented on two consecutive days, on an armed stage in Botafogo Beach, to an audience estimated at more than 70 thousand people who could see a classic work complete with modern music, a link between modern youth and a classic work.
In 1989, invited to the festivities commemorating the “Vive la France” - Bi-centenary of the French Revolution, ABRJ held a ballet show for an audience of over 100 thousand people. From 1996 to 1999, the show Um Natal bem Brasileiro by the Christmas tree set up by the Bradesco Seguros company, in Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas was performed by the Ballet Association of Rio de Janeiro.
In June 2000, the Association created the Youth Ballet Company of Rio de Janeiro, an unprecedented project in Brazil. Its creation was driven by the scarce cultural labor market in Brazil, which leads young dancers to abandon the dream of pursuing a professional career after several years of study and dedication. The Youth Ballet Company of Rio de Janeiro is the expression of the cultural development policy and opens a professional path for talented young people, opening a space to be known in the panorama of Brazilian and international dance.
In 2006, Tte Youth Ballet Company presented the ballet “Um Conto de Natal”, at Teatro João Caetano to over 16 thousand people. In 2010, the Youth Ballet Company of Rio de Janeiro, in partnership with the Theatro Municipal Foundation of Rio de Janeiro, presents a series of shows at the Theatro Municipal on Sunday mornings, serving a young audience of students and a part of the population that it does not always have the possibility of a cultural leisure.
From 2011 to 2017 it performs in several municipalities in the State of Rio and in Rio de Janeiro. In 2019 it participated with the Baile Corps of the Theatro Municipal in the Ballet Coppelia season in 3 acts, held several other shows at the Municipal Theater in partnership with the House Corps of Ball. In 2019 also as a special guest Ballet Jovem from Rio de Janeiro performed with enormous success at the opening and closing of FIDA - International Festival of Amazonian Dance in Belem do Pará. It also presented performances at the Prudential Theater in Rio de Janeiro, in Rezende at the Teatro das Agulhas Negras, and ended the year with a season of 25 performances of the ballet “Um Conto de Natal” at the Teatro Riachuelo Rio de Janeiro with a full house.
With a vast repertoire of classical, contemporary pieces and various dance styles, Ballet in Rio de Janeiro has a unique and indelible presence in the History of Dance in our country. From his ballet company suggested names such as Ana Botafogo, Cícero Gomes among many others and with the Ballet Company of Rio de Janeiro danced the biggest names in 20th century dance stars and stars like Margot Fonteyn, Rudolf Nureyev, Natalia Makarova, dozens of other international stars and stars.
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