Ballet 314
Celebrating Local Talent Within the Community
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Programs and results
What we aim to solve
As a brand-new nonprofit, we are working hard to raise the funds needed to stage and produce our very first large scale production, The Nutcracker & The World's Fair. This is a world premiere re-telling of St Louis' favorite historical event, the 1904 World's Fair, with everyone's most treasured holiday classic, The Nutcracker. Our Co-Artistic Directors and our board members are dedicating significant time and effort required to create and stage this ballet. We have a large community cast joining us for these performances on Dec 6th and 7th, 2019. Meanwhile, we are also working with schools and libraries to bring Llama Llama and Friends to more locations in the spring of 2020. We have a commitment to Old Bonhomme Elementary School to bring the ballet to their school. We expect to work with many more schools and libraries to bring the ballet to them, also. Our next major performance will be a performance in May 2020 of a mixed bill repertoire.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Llama Llama and Friends
A brand new children's ballet written around the characters in the Llama Llama and Friends children's book. This ballet is narrated from the original book by Anna Dewdney and is set to music from the album Happy Dance by Scott and Rosanna, with choreography by the Ballet 314 artistic directors, Rachel Bodi and Robert Poe.
Assemble
A children's ballet created to highlight and provide education on the instruments of the orchestra. Choreography and movement is set to different orchestra instruments and paired with classical ballet music. Different segments of the ballet focus on woodwinds, percussion, brass, and strings.
The Nutcracker & The World's Fair
A brand new, narrated take on the holiday tradition with historic ties to St Louis. Ballet 314 brings St Louis' favorite historical event and everyone's most treasured holiday classic together in this first-ever re-telling of The Nutcracker and the World's Fair. Join Clara and her family as they make memories through the sights, sounds, and sweets of the St Louis 1904 World's Fair
Ragtime, the American Experience
“Ragtime encapsulates the human experience in a richly textured and heart wrenching story that will lead you to re-examine the American dream.”
Ballet 314 Artistic Director Robert Poe’s energizing and historically informed production of Ragtime: The American Experience brings a unique re-telling of E.L Doctorow’s epic American novel. Three families from different racial and cultural backgrounds navigate the social change during the turn of the century in New York. We watch them face the impact of racism, police brutality, and domestic abuse while in pursuit of their American Dream.
During its premiere in 2021, Ragtime: The American Experience united local performers from The Big Muddy Dance Company, St Louis Ballet, Ashleyliane Dance Company, as well as Missouri Baptist University and was described as “a relevant and powerful social justice ballet” by attendees. Don’t miss this moving cultural experience.
Chocolat
Join Ballet 314's professional company as they perform “Chocolat.” This ballet, narrated in both Spanish and English is adapted from the book, “Chocolat and The Master (of my heart)” by Doris E. Lugo Ramírez (2020). This book tells two perspectives of the encounter that changed the course of the lives of both a regular runner and animal lover, and the abandoned dog who, among her adventures, howled at the moon for a helping hand. This brand new work is a fun dance of love suitable for adults and children. Following the performance, audience members will even have a chance to dance along with the performers from Ballet 314.
Fall Fete; Twisted Tales
This seasonal mixed bill highlights choreography and storytelling, and will leave the audience ready to join us for performances to come. Selections are paired with Edgar Allen Poe poems read aloud by a professional storyteller, as the story comes to life through the dancers and choreography on stage.
Where we work
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Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
We aspire to provide encouragement and partnership with local organizations and to be a bridge for the arts in St Louis. Ballet 314 was founded with a heart to serve the community.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Community outreach is our main focus. We are partnering with schools, libraries, other arts organizations, and local businesses to bring ballet performances and programs to more people in the local community. We are dedicated to celebrating local talent within the community and see a need to connect the many talented professional dancers in the area with the need and opportunity for educational and entertaining performances for audiences of all ages.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
The Co-Artistic Directors for Ballet 314 are extremely dedicated and talented professional ballet dancers. Robert Poe and Rachel Bodi have danced with a number of other professional dance companies in the careers. The dancers who perform with Ballet 314 are all professional dancers who have chosen St Louis as their home. All of them have a heart to serve the community and a dedication to the mission of Ballet 314.
The three board members are all volunteering their time and talents to ensure that Ballet 314 is a successful nonprofit start-up in St Louis.
Our board president has prior experience leading other nonprofit professional ballet companies; Our treasurer has thirty years of business experience and also serves on another local nonprofit board. Our secretary is an extremely talented designer who donates her considerable skills to the graphic design and branding of Ballet 314.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Ballet 314 has been commissioned for 2 brand-new ballets so far; Assemble and Llama Llama and Friends. In addition, we have participated in the commUNITY Arts Festival this summer as part of that nonprofit organization's efforts to raise community-wide awareness of violent crimes through art. We are staging and producing a brand-new re-telling of The Nutcracker & The World's Fair, and are being joined by a large adult and youth community cast for these performances on the 6th and 7th of December 2019.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Ballet 314
Board of directorsas of 07/25/2023
Rachel Bodi
Eugenia Jones
Maura Caldwell
Sarah Ballance
Morgan Pfeiffer
Sarah Mayer
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? No -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? No -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? No -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
The organization's co-leader identifies as: