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New Home for the Kansas City Ballet: Power House Renovations Underway

photo: courtesy of the Kansas City Ballet

Renovations are underway for something the Kansas City Ballet, in its 52-year history, has never had: a permanent home.

By Laura Spencer

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/national/local-national-861537.mp3

Kansas City, MO – The Todd Bolender Center for Dance and Creativity, slated to open in 2011, will be located in the Union Station Power House building. The historic power plant will house the Ballet's school and seven studios.

The center is named in honor of Todd Bolender, a former Balanchine dancer who served as artistic director for the Kansas City Ballet, 1981 - 1996. Bolender died in 2006 at the age of 92.

The idea has been in the works for more than a decade. And despite a fund raising shortfall for the $39 million dollar project ($3 million remains to be raised for construction, $3.5 million for $7 million endowment), the Kansas City Ballet is forging ahead. KCUR's Laura Spencer reports.

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Photos: Laura Spencer/KCUR, and courtesy of the Kansas City Ballet.

Kansas City is known for its style of jazz, influenced by the blues, as the home of Walt Disney’s first animation studio and the headquarters of Hallmark Cards. As one of KCUR’s arts reporters, I want people here to know a wide range of arts and culture stories from across the metropolitan area. I take listeners behind the scenes and introduce them to emerging artists and organizations, as well as keep up with established institutions. Send me an email at lauras@kcur.org or follow me on Twitter @lauraspencer.
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