Capital Region Cares Capital Region Cares 2018-2019 | Page 26

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n a September afternoon last year, Amy Seiwert raising. The two have previously worked together, and
glided between adoring patrons at the CLARA au- Krutzkamp says they have a natural partnership — one
ditorium during the intermission of “Telling Sto- where, together, Krutzkamp is confident they can man-
ries,” a series of short performances that showcase age the business end of making Seiwert’s vision a reality
a new chapter of the Sacramento Ballet.
and help Sacramento “harness the rewards” of the cre-
In its four-act performance, “Telling Stories” went ative economy.
beyond unconventional choreography. For instance, “In-
Krutzkamp explains that the Sacramento Ballet is
structions” was Seiwert’s interpretation of a poem by Neil currently about the same size as the Grand Rapids Ballet
Gaiman, more well-known for books like “Coraline” and in Michigan, with a similar budget — though Sacramen-
“American Gods.” Far from a typical ballet, the perfor- to is almost double the population. He wants to grow the
mance featured a live microphone on a dancer who nar- organization and outreach to bring arts to more regional
rated the experience.
residents.
“People hear ‘ballet’ and think of swans and nutcrack-
“We actually have a lot of people to dance for who ar-
ers,” Seiwert says. “I want to blow the lid off that. ‘Wow, en’t as engaged as they could be,” says Krutzkamp. “We
I didn’t know I could feel like that.’ … That’s what I’m are the ballet for Rocklin, Fair Oaks, Vacaville and so
shooting for.”
many other areas. I want to grow our presence in the re-
Seiwert started her new role as the artistic director of gion. ”
the Sacramento Ballet in July 2018. She spent the year pri-
Seiwert’s vision is ref lective of the organization’s mis-
or as an artistic director designate, learning how the orga- sion to “make ballet relevant, fresh and engaging to a
nization functioned and how
modern audience.” The hope
the ballet fits in the arts eco-
is to attract and retain patrons
system of the Capital Region,
through unexpected, modern
with other industry peers like
performances.
the Sacramento Philharmonic
“This is my dream job,” Sei-
& Opera, Crocker Art Muse-
wert says. “I have a consistent
um, and B Street Theatre.
place to create art in an orga-
Seiwert danced with the
nization that has a diverse pal-
Sacramento Ballet from 1991
ette of talent. The Sacramento
to 1999. She then danced for
Ballet doesn’t employee cook-
nine years for the Smuin Bal-
ie-cutter dancers.”
let in the Bay Area. After re-
Stefan Calka, dancing his
tiring as a dancer, she worked
15th
season with the ballet,
— Amy Seiwert, artistic director, Sacramento Ballet
as a choreographer for ballet
says he enjoys performing
companies across the coun-
work that resonates with mod-
try. She was named a choreographer in residence with ern audiences and that dancers thrive on a variety of
Smuin in San Francisco and started running a summer work. He notes the diversity in the pieces with the Sacra-
ballet company. That’s when she got the call that would mento Ballet, ranging from modern and contemporary to
lead her to the job that she says she’s been “training for classic and traditional.
her whole life.” She is only the fourth artistic director in
“I find ballet set to popular music rewarding,” Calka
the ballet’s 64-year history.
says. “It can feel more relevant. Ballet dancers don’t all
Seiwert says her goal is to break through the precon- come from highbrow worlds where it’s all classical music
ceptions most people have about ballet. “Ballet is often and stories of princes. Programs like ‘Telling Stories’ keep
viewed like a secret handshake is needed to open the things fresh and new.”
door. Many people don’t understand it, and as an indus-
In addition to his work with the ballet, Calka is one of
try, we have been traditionally slow to change, which the original founders of the Capital Dance Project, which
honestly has not served us.”
formed in 2015. CDP is a dancer-run collective that oper-
Seiwert became artistic director during a time of ates over the summer while the Sacramento Ballet is in
major transition at the Sacramento Ballet. The board of recess.
directors comprises many fresh faces, with more than
Calka says with each passing season, the CDP has be-
half the members joining the ranks in the last two years. come more efficient.
Anthony Krutzkamp became executive director in fall of
“The longer we do this, the better we get at under-
2017, and Ron Fredmen took the role of director of devel- standing how much rehearsal time we need, how to best
opment around the same time. Both have extensive ex- reach the community and how to collaborate with other
perience with the internal workings of ballet and fund- artists,” says Calka.
“People hear ‘ballet’
and think of swans and
nutcrackers. I want to
blow the lid off that.”
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