Texas Ballet Theater

Profile

Founded as the Fort Worth Ballet in 1961, this dance troupe turned fully professional by the mid-1980s. But it wasn’t until the 21st century that it took on a larger influence—and a new name—when city officials in Dallas and Fort Worth decided to combine their efforts to ensure North Texas had an elite ballet company. The result, now known as the Texas Ballet Theater, is the resident ballet company of both the Bass Performance Hall and the Winspear Opera House and is the only arts group to serve both cities. Compared to some of the smaller dance companies in Dallas-Fort Worth, the stable of more than 30 dancers employed by the Texas Ballet Theater seems enormous, but the size allows for an ambitious performance schedule that has included, among many others, favorites such as The Nutcracker, Romeo and Juliet, and Sleeping Beauty. Texas Ballet Theater also operates a pair of ballet academies—one in Dallas and one in Fort Worth—for students ages 4 to 21. CityDance offers dance classes and eduction for fleet-footed kids in lower socioeconomic communities.