Toulmin Press Announcement

Announcement by Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation

October 23, 2024

The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation is pleased to announce the funding for two choreographer -in-residence positions at US ballet companies. At Ballet X in Philadelphia, the foundation is funding Amy Hall Garner as Choreographer in Residence for a three-year period. At Sarasota Ballet the foundation is funding Jessica Lang as Artist in Residence for a three-year period jointly with the Muriel O’Neil Fund. Each choreographer will have the opportunity to choreograph multiple pieces with the company, so that she and the company dancers can learn and grow together. The foundation hopes that ever longer pieces for the company will result in the future, including a full-length work.

In a study of premiers of full-length ballets between 2018-2023 commissioned by the 50 largest ballet companies by Data Dance Project, only 18% were choreographed by women. See https://ddp-wordpress.storage.googleapis.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/13131949/Full-Length-World-and-United-States-Premieres-Data-Byte.pdf

The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation is the first and only foundation that exclusively funds female choreographers, as well as female composers and playwrights. Mrs. Toulmin was a believer in equal opportunity and fairness for women and girls. Alexander Sanger, a Trustee of the Foundation, stated that, “We are proud to forward Mrs. Toulmin’s values by partnering with Sarasota Ballet and Ballet X, both premier ballet companies in this country. We wish a great future to these choreographers and the companies that are partnering with them.”