Most days I have no desire to live in New York City or Chicago, but there was one thing that could make me pack up and pay $2,500 per month for a studio apartment: Iowa was seriously lacking in professional dance.
Ballet Des Moines may have saved me a fortune in moving expenses. In the past five years, they have gone from a little known stepping stone company to an in-demand regional company with strong local roots, changing the dance scene in Iowa.
“[Des Moines] is an incredible city with an incredible arts community, but there’s a gap where the dance world is concerned,” said CEO Blaire Massa. “That’s why we had the opportunity to rise so quickly through the ranks and to gain such incredible support and momentum over the last five years. But the reality is that there isn’t a ton of professional dance happening in Iowa, and we are excited to not only fill the gap but also give Iowans something unique.”
I see this unique quality in See the Music, a collaboration with the Civic Music Association of Des Moines. The upcoming performance explores the tangible connection between music and movement, with live musicians sharing the stage with the dancers.
“It is more than just a ballet, it is more than just a concert,” Massa told me over Zoom.
The show’s title comes from a quote by master choreographer George Balanchine, known for his musicality: “See the music, hear the dance.” The show challenges the audience to switch their senses around, to hear the choreography and see the melodies, to play a game in translation and interpretation.
Regional companies like Ballet Des Moines are able to create pieces that couldn’t be made anywhere else, that are relevant to the community they serve. This is the reason why, Massa told me, she works for a regional dance company; she left a job in Washington D.C. five years ago to come to Iowa.
“The really big dance companies are important, but the reality is they are not really pushing the envelope because they have such machines to drive,” Massa explained “… For an organization with a $20 million budget to change a practice because it’s toxic or to stop doing something even though it’s been done for a long time — those changes are incredibly hard to make on a large scale. Regional companies are doing a much better job at actually reflecting back a community’s values and identity in a way that is unique.”
Ballet Des Moines breaks down barriers to arts access with programs focused not just on ballet, but on movement and music in general. “It’s a pillar of our mission to get the arts into the lives of folks that think that maybe ballet is not for them, or the arts are not for them.”
Some creative cross-disciplinary programs have included a “Choreography and Coding” workshop attended by 300 Girl Scouts, and an annual Summer STEM tour that takes the company to rural communities for free outdoor performances and activities incorporating science, engineering and math. I’m told many audience members come for the onion rings but end up staying for Swan Lake.
“There is so much data that backs up our work proving that access to arts and any kind of creative programing when you’re in school can change the outcomes of your life later on,” Massa said. “So we’re not trying to create a bunch of ballerinas across Iowa, but we are trying to inspire our young generation to really have the confidence to step outside of their comfort zone and to speak in front of a room and to be themselves and tell their story.”
BDM’s new downtown space fulfills my big-city fantasy, as well. The giant windows of the studio invite passersby to glimpse daily class, costume fittings and rehearsals, joining the city’s energy.
“The visibility of being downtown is really impactful for us,” Massa said. “I’m really excited for us to be intricately webbed into the fabric of Des Moines.” Part of this webbing has come from participating in the conversations around revitalizing downtown. The company has committed to partnering with downtown businesses for window displays, hosting studio space for community classes and offering some courses of their own, taught by company dancers for adult learners. “We want this to be a resource for folks who want to be a part of this programming.”
So while I don’t know how long I can take these Iowa winters, my hankering for professional dance is being taken care of. How lucky we are to have a homegrown ballet company visiting small towns, telling Iowa stories and taking risks. I’ll take that over the anonymity of NYC any day.
This article was originally published in Little Village’s February 2025 issue.
