Recipients of Governor’s Award for the Arts and Humanities, the Ballethnic dance company astonished audience members with their spectacular stage show at Porter Sanford Performing Arts Center by Roz Edward Atlanta’s premier Black dance company’s recent performance of All The Way Live at the Po rter Sanford Performing Arts Center has the markings of an award-winning production on many levels. The group of inspired dancers ranging in ages from 3 to 80, delivered brilliant and lively performances along with poignant musical accompaniments provided by Ballethnic’s associate artistic and musical director Adam L. McKnight, which included several of Atlanta’s most popular vocalists.  This show was by no means your run of the mill dance recital. If you thought you knew what to expect from a local group of dance enthusiasts – students and supporters – Ballethnic’s performance of All The Way Live will take you to next level appreciation. In this performance culture and curation mingle playfully and poignantly to offer a expanse of experiences for audience members. Not taking anything from Alvin Ailey, but Atlanta is home to one of only three Black ballet companies in the U.S. It is also the second oldest Black Ballet company in the country, with Theater of Harlem and Collage Dance Company in Memphis, Tennesee. When successful Black people talk about giving back it’s a catchphrase for social programs for youth and underrepresented communities, but somehow the arts aren’t given the same weight as those worthy causes, although it is one of the most effective and fulfilling for Black youth. “Many of these dancers go on to do great things in the dance world and the arts overall. “Halle and Chloe Bailey are graduates of Ballethnic,” said Nina Gilreath, co-founder of the 34-year old company. “The point is to get the support these dancers need to make a living wage in this grueling dance world.” Gilreath explained that Ballethnic’s future is bright, but she is intent on making the company financially sustainable and accessible for generations to come. “We are working on building and enhancing our campus off Cheney Street and most recently the mayor and the city council of Eastpointe approved that our street be renamed Ballethenic Way. So, we want to enhance our space. Perkinson Will, a couple of years ago did an architectural plan to expand it to make it bigger, more attractive and more conducive. So, when we do a big ballet like this, our studio is not large enough to really accommodate the number of people and that number of classes, and we just want to enhance the whole campus to have an outdoor space, because we do a lot of things already outside. And we just want to beautify and continue to improve our area,” explained Gilreath. “What I feel is that we have to have an endowment,” added Ballehtnic co-founder Waverly T. Lucas. “Without an endowment, basically, any of our organizations can postpone. So within the capital campaign, that has to also be connected to an endowment, so that we can have strategic sustainability.” Recent milestones for the 34-year-old organization include a performance at the Kennedy Center and establishing partnerships with dance companies in East Africa and Canada. Ballethnic will also travel to Amsterdam to participate in the Holland Dance Festival as it continues to train and educate students and communities around the world and reframe the narrative around Black dance. “Through our capital campaign, we’re going to develop our campus and we’re working on our legacy leadership and succession plan,” said Glireath. “So what we’re hoping is that for us, we’re at a place of expertise, where people want us to come and share the gospel of dance and ballet. We want to put things in place so that the next generation will not have to struggle and be able to make really good – not just living wages – but great wages.” “So, we are working on building and enhancing our campus off Cheney Street and most recently the mayor and the city council of Eastpointe approved that our street be renamed Ballethenic Way. So, we want to enhance our space. Perkinson Will, a couple of years ago did an architectural plan to expand it to make it bigger, more attractive and more conducive. So, when we do a big ballet like this, our studio is not large enough to really accommodate the number of people and that number of classes, and we just want to enhance the whole campus to have an outdoor space, because we do a lot of things already outside. And we just want to beautify and continue to improve our area,” explained Gilreath.         The post BRAVO Ballethnic ‘All The Way Live’ is An Electrifying Show with Stellar Performances appeared first on Atlanta Daily World. ...read more read less