Joffrey Ballet, one of the major American dance companies. It was founded in New York City in 1956 by the dancer-choreographer Robert Joffrey. From 1956 to 1964 it made yearly tours of the United States. The company was dissolved in 1964 and then revived in 1965 by Joffrey, Alex Ewing, and Gerald Arpino. In 1966 it became affiliated with the New York City Center as the City Center Joffrey Ballet. Extremely popular, the company toured worldwide. Robert Joffrey died in 1988 and, after severe financial crises in New York, the company reorganized and under Arpino's direction made its permanent home in Chicago in 1995. Ashley Wheater succeeded Arpino as artistic director in 2007. The company's modern repertory has featured the work of outstanding choreographers, including George Balanchine, Antony Tudor, Alvin Ailey, and Christopher Wheeldon, as well as of less established figures.
See S. Anawalt, The Joffrey Ballet (1996).
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