Description

The Musical Theatre Performance Ensemble offers an unparalleled opportunity for musical theatre performers to form artistic connections with Choreographer/Directors who are workshopping and creating dance-driven material for musicals in development. Dancers live and work alongside the Festival’s international artist community, where artistic growth thrives and the possibilities for dance continually expand. Daily dance technique, improvisation, vocal training, or acting-based classes begin each morning. Afternoons and some evenings are dedicated to creative development rehearsals with the Choreographer/Directors, offering in-depth coaching on the multiple roles choreographers expect of performers from studio to stage. Workshops with the program’s three distinct Choreographers/Directors, as well as Festival Artists, will invite dancers to explore their own creativity and a range of movement languages and choreographic approaches. Seminars and discussions with Artist Faculty, Festival Artists, and School Alumni will offer deeper insight into the expectations, professional standards, and industry practices needed to sustain a career in dance. The Ensemble performs before Festival audiences to strengthen performance skills and the artistry needed individually, and as an ensemble, to meaningfully express choreographic intent. On the final program day, the Ensemble appears on the iconic outdoor Henry J. Leir Stage, featuring excerpts of works developed or staged during the program. The in-person and livestream audiences include School-invited artistic directors of ballet companies who Ensemble dancers aspire to work with in the future. Throughout the program, rigorous artistic practices build the skills and connections necessary for each dancer to become an exceptional performer and collaborator with a distinct artistic voice. Dancers depart the Festival as lifelong members of the global Jacob’s Pillow Alumni network.