Ballet Theatre Company will return to its original mission as a school, and will be holding fundraisers to return to financial stability following the departure of the former artistic and managing director.
School of Ballet Theatre Company Dancers. Courtesy of SBTC (we-ha.com file photo)
By Ronni Newton
West Hartford’s Ballet Theatre Company was founded in 1999 as a ballet school – producing a spring show and contracting with a few professional dancers for the students’ holiday season performances of The Nutcracker – but an aggressive expansion several years ago to incorporate a professional company ultimately proved unsustainable and that operation has been dissolved while the organization is regrouping and returning to its roots.
Stephanie Dattellas, BTC’s artistic and managing director, abruptly left the organization – and town – in late April amid questions about finances raised by the nonprofit’s Board of Directors.
The Board ultimately discovered that rent and liability insurance payments were overdue and the professional dancers were also owed money.
Ashleigh Martin, who took over as chair of BTC’s Board of Directors in January, told We-Ha.com shortly after Dattellas’ departure that “Our focus is on maintaining the dance school. The current Board consists of quite a few new individuals, including myself, who are actively working through the recent changes to BTC and a solution.”
The financial problems – which Martin said appear to be a mismanagement situation – came to a head shortly after BTC’s production of Snow White at The Bushnell in April. Several of the professional dancers told We-Ha.com that Dattellas had emailed them the last week of April, before she left, informing them of a “cash crunch” that would delay their paychecks. The dancers, who spoke under the condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the situation, had been hired for 33-week contracts in 2023, that ran through mid-May, and were left not only uncertain about how they were going to pay their next rent bill and other expenses.
“I’m an accountant by trade so I take finances very seriously,” said Martin, who specializes in working with nonprofits and is herself a former Irish Step dancer.
“On behalf of the Board of Directors at The Ballet Theatre Company (BTC) we are committed to continuing our mission to make ballet accessible to everyone,” Martin said in response to initial questions in early May about the status of the organization. She said they had taken losses for multiple years and in order to move forward will be turning to the community for support.
“We have no greater responsibility than supporting our dancers, staff and community we impact everyday,” she said. “The Board is committed to keeping the school running,” Martin told We-Ha.com in a subsequent phone interview.
The Board, she said, was committed to finishing out the contracts of the professional dancers, and she said they were all paid by May 20.
The professional dance company was launched in 2021, funded by a large grant and a one-time sizable donation, Martin said. But after that, it was up to BTC to maintain the professional company, and fund it through ticket sales. While it’s common in the performing arts arena that productions run deficits, and while BTC’s school remained profitable, there wasn’t enough profit to offset the losses.
“It’s a great program,” Martin said. “But unfortunately we had to dissolve it,” she said.
“Unfortunately, Snow White lost a significant amount of money,” Martin said.
With the rent paid and liability insurance reinstated, the Board turned its focus to fundraising and getting the school back up and running.
“A fundraising committee has been established, we will be providing updates on Instagram (@dancebtc), Facebook, and the website as things are planned,” Martin said last week.
In addition, BTC founder Tracy Dorman, who had retired in 2022 but remained involved in an “emeritus” role, is back in an active role with the organization, and is involved in the day-to-day operations and teaching classes.
Tracy Dorman (with bouquet of flowers) retired in 2022 as executive director of Ballet Theatre Company. Courtesy photo (we-ha.com file photo)
While the dancers have been paid what was due and are able to continue their training and keep their skills up now that the insurance is again in place and the facility is open, some still face uncertainty about their next steps. They have been offered the opportunity to teach classes at BTC, Martin said, but because they had no reason to believe that they would not be returning for the following season, the dancers who spoke with We-Ha.com expressed concern about the future since the window of opportunity for auditioning to join other companies had already passed.
Martin said the professional dancers will be provided with letters of recommendation, and explanations from the Board about the situation. “I’m hoping there are other professional opportunities for them,” she said.
Martin said when she joined the Board in January there had previously been a lot of turnover. By March, she really started to delve into the finances and the problems became apparent.
“This Board is committed to getting the school back on track, getting the classes running … and allowing kids to have their time to shine.” They are also committed to righting the ship, and to transparency, she added.
“Our summer school sessions are currently being planned, and if anyone in the community is interested they can go to the website for more information,” Martin said.
Parents of the BTC students have been great, Martin said. And as for the financial situation, she said donations are being welcomed in addition to fundraising activities. “Nothing is off the table,” she said.
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