MoBBallet Symposium to take place August 7-13

Theresa Ruth Howard, diversity strategist and founder of MoBBallet, has announced initial details for the fourth MoBBallet Symposium, which centers Blackness in ballet but welcomes all. This year’s symposium is planned to be held in person at the Sanctuary of the Arts, located in Coral Gables, Florida, in Miami-Dade County from August 7-13. Select sessions will also be offered virtually.

Hosted by Sanctuary of the Arts and entitled MoBBallet/MIA — which stands for this year’s themes of motivation, innovation, and activation; and gives a nod to the host city of Miami — the symposium will provide elite dance training mentorship, professional development and training for dance educators, scholarly and community dialogue in addition to networking opportunities. Although the ballet tracks are designed specifically for Black identifying dancers, all other aspects of the symposium are open to all!

This year the symposium will introduce a program for choreographers of color, and include an open class track to serve the Miami-based dance community and create an intercultural experience for local dance artists.

“MoBBallet’s programming is constantly evolving in relation to the needs of the ballet field, and our community within it,” said Howard. “MoBBallet Symposium/MIA will integrate our pre-pandemic in person programming with our digital programming, which was curated as a pivot during lockdown. To have all the elements of what MoBBallet does in one physical space and to be hosted by Sanctuary for the Arts, whose campus in Coral Gables extends into the heart of the Bahamian community, is truly thrilling.”

“The message and the mission of Sanctuary for the Arts and MoBBallet are in perfect alignment, so it was an organic decision to host the symposium,” said Rafi Maldonado-Lopez, Principal Managing Director of Sanctuary of the Arts. “To expose the participants as well as our highly diverse community to the spectrum of dance, education and scholarship centered around Blackness speaks directly to the African-Descendant communities of Greater Miami which include Caribbean, Central and South America and specifically Coral Gables. These are some of the important conversations that we, as a community, need to be engaging in.”

The Symposium will offer: High caliber dance training and mentoring to advanced and intermediate Black ballet dancers by faculty and mentors that look like them; Developmental courses for dance educators and studio owners led by industry professionals; A choreography program to support the development of Black ballet choreographers; Academic and dance educators a platform to present, as well engage in discourse via panels and town hall sessions; and programming that addresses and interrogates the state of the arts, and will offer opportunities for the dance community to liaise with ballet leadership.

For the latest information please click here.