Rumors of the New York-based Joffrey Ballet’s impending move to Chicago and its likely merger with Ballet Chicago continue to swirl without a resolution in sight. Ballet Chicago’s funding situation hasn’t been helped by talk of the possible Joffrey move, and sources say Ballet Chicago artistic director Dan Duell isn’t nearly so gung ho about the merger as he was several months ago. For the record Joffrey board president David Kipper would say only that talks are continuing on a number of fronts.
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One of the major obstacles to the merger is the Joffrey’s surprisingly large debt. According to Kipper, much of the debt was owed to members of the Joffrey board of directors and has been resolved. However, according to Alex Dube, the American Guild of Musical Artists executive representing the Joffrey’s dancers, the company still owes its dancers approximately $900,000. Dube says $219,179 of that sum is a “nonnegotiable” payment for services rendered. As far as the remainder is concerned, he says, the dancers have offered to accept 25 cents on the dollar. The Joffrey board wants to settle the entire debt for a flat payment of $150,000–a deal Dube says is unacceptable. The Joffrey needs to settle this dispute before it can sign a collective bargaining agreement with dancers who might want to join a new Joffrey troupe here in Chicago.
The source says although Breman talked about the Joffrey presenting annual fall, winter, and spring seasons in Chicago, he didn’t say for sure where those performances would occur. The theater opening this fall in Rosemont, along with the smaller Shubert and Merle Reskin theaters downtown, were mentioned as possible sites, but neither the Shubert nor the Merle Reskin has a stage large enough to showcase a company of Joffrey’s size, and scheduling of other attractions would make it complicated to present a season at any of those venues. Breman supposedly suggested the proposed theater at Cityfront Center as a long-term home for the Joffrey, but assuming the project stays on schedule that facility won’t open till late 1997.
