Joffrey Ballet’s 16th Annual Winning Works Choreographic Competition Application Deadline Fast Approaching
Applications for the Grainger Academy of The Joffrey Ballet’s 16th Annual Winning Works Choreographic Competition are due on July 31, 2025.
The mission-driven, access-oriented initiative seeks to provide opportunities for everyone, regardless of background, to experience, support, and participate in dance. The goal of the award is to recognize talented, emerging choreographers whose unique perspectives will inspire creativity in the form of original works of dance. The Joffrey aims to broaden access for artists who have been historically excluded from the art form and empower those who embody its values to shape the future of dance.
The five winning choreographers will be awarded a $5,000 stipend, given a minimum of 30 rehearsal hours, and travel and accommodations for the duration of their residency.
Four of the choreographers will set their piece on the members of the Joffrey Studio Company, the Ballet Trainee Program, and the Contemporary Ballet Trainee Program, and a selected fifth, Chicago-based emerging choreographer will set their piece on the students of the Conservatory Program. The selected choreographers will also have the opportunity to seek guidance from Ashley Wheater MBE, The Mary B. Galvin Artistic Director of The Joffrey Ballet, and Abbott Academy Director Suzanne Lopez.
The Grainger Academy of The Joffrey Ballet’s Winning Works program will be presented in nine performances at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Joffrey’s hosting partner, at MCA’s Edlis Neeson Theater, 220 E. Chicago Avenue, in March 2026.
The full online application form is available at joffrey.org/winningworks. Questions can be emailed to winningworks@joffrey.org.
