With summertime upon us, our days carry energized life, inspired movement, and creative new activity. In this welcome warm and active summer season, Thodos Dance Chicago in partnership with DanceWorks Chicago, celebrates 7 years in partnership bringing new dance visions to the stage through New Dances 2025. In addition, we are thrilled to toast a landmark year celebrating how special it is to turn 25, as this year also marks the 25^th anniversary of New Dances under the TDC umbrella.

Join us for this unique project founded 42 years ago in and for our Chicago Community on Wednesday June 18^th, Friday June 20^th and Saturday June 21^st. Connect with the ND ’25 creators by seeing their work and dialoguing with them following the performance in our post show Q & A forum. You will be moved, you will be inspired, and in the theme of festivity we invite you to join us for a special closing night post show celebration!

Can’t make it to a performance? Help someone in our community to experience one through our Pay-It-Forward ticket opportunity….do good, feel good!



Read on valued reader, and cheers to community and creativity!

Opening Night is 1 week away, get your tickets for New Dances 2025 NOW!

Be the first to see World Premieres by Chicago-based choreographers Hanna DiLorenzo, Janiya Pearson, Kelsi Fears, Maddy McCarthy, Shota Miyoshi, Xenia Mansour.

• DATES: Wednesday, June 18; Friday, June 20; and Saturday, June 21
• TIME: 7pm
• DURATION: 90 minutes
• VENUE: The Ruth Page Center Theater, 1016 North Dearborn, Chicago
• BONUS: Each performance includes a post-show Q & A with the choreographers.
• $20 RisingStar Ticket
• $40 SuperStar Ticket
• $80 SuperStar Ticket with Post-Performance Celebration (Saturday, June 21 only, limited availability)
• Post-performance Celebration Venue: Rose Lounge at Adalina, 912 North State Street, Chicago, 60610. Guests will enjoy light bites, specialty drinks, and the opportunity to mingle with New Dances 2025 artists.
• TICKET LINK: https://buytickets.at/danceworkschicago/1703576

Check out our spotlight in the Chicago Tribune's lineup of dance to see this summer here!

Pay-It-Forward (PIF) Ticket Program

Last season, Team New Dances piloted a PIF Ticket program, and 76 audience members benefited from the kindness of Good Dance Citizens. Our goal this season: support for 100 audience members through the PIF Program!

How does it work?

• StART with kindness.
• MAKE a $20 donation by purchasing a PIF ticket here (price of a New Dances 2025 ticket)
• Or contribute $40 for 2, $60 for 3, or Blue Sky It!
• WATCH ticket vouchers appear on a CommUNITY Call Board in June (via Instagram)
• CHEER commUNITY members claiming PIF Tickets from the Call Board!

In the spirit of serving our commUNITY, we are calling upon Good Dance Citizens to gift PIF tickets to the CommUNITY Call Board, which gives an opportunity for a community member to experience the performance at no charge! Community members may redeem vouchers for a New Dances 2025 performance by responding to Instagram Stories on either the Thodos Dance Chicago or DanceWorks Chicago pages.

How do you do?

DanceWorks Chicago dancer, Ella Kim, is leaning into the NEW of New Dances. Here are some fun facts about the New Dances 2025 choreographers she wanted to share! Check out the video, then pick a date on your calendar to see and support World Premieres next week!

New Dances 2025 is well underway as we finish up week 2 at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts this week (RPC)! The Dance Center of Columbia College (DCCC) graciously opened their facilities to us for our first creative week of the project. The company had a wonderful week of classes and rehearsals which culminated with our Mentorship Panel Showing in the theater at the DCCC.

During the showing, the works in progress were presented to our 2025 panelists who included Jeff Hancock, Imani English, and Melissa Thodos. The showing offers the choreographers a chance to hear feedback about their work mid process. We are so grateful for the wonderful insight our panelists shared with our 2025 cohort of choreographers!

New Dances Co-founder Barbara Stein discussing the project with Melissa Thodos

A Tree Grows in Chicago

by Melissa Thodos

Since the seed was sown in 1983, New Dances has offered an adventure in creativity, risk, challenge and inspiration in our community. Co-Founder Barbara Stein planted an inspiring and ambitious idea: create a treasured annual forum for collaboration and innovation. She gave it life by planting it with The Chicago Repertory Dance Ensemble (CRDE), its original home. Of New Dances, Barbara shares, “I like to think of it as ‘dance without walls’ because resources and artists are shared – dancers dance with artists they haven’t worked with before, embracing experimental and imaginative movement styles, working hard to express and interpret the intent of new choreographers who are taking this chance to explore their artistry, hopefully pushing boundaries so we can all, perhaps, see the world from a different perspective and through fresh pioneering eyes!” The project sprouted, watered and fertilized with resources and creativity, flourishing as a seedling with CRDE and the community. Melissa Thodos discovered her creative voice as a member of CRDE, choreographing for many New Dances projects throughout the 80’s, developing her craft in a safe, supportive and inspiring creative environment. 

After founding her own company, Thodos Dance Chicago (TDC) in 1992, Melissa received permission to continue New Dances in 2000 after structural shifts at CRDE. The project was replanted, growing into a beautiful sapling through 25 years under the TDC umbrella. It is important to note that New Dances in its original form with CRDE and TDC was a platform specifically for the members of those companies to create as choreographers, inviting dancers and designers from the community to participate. That premise changed in 2017 when Melissa reached into the community for a partner organization to add more light, sun, fertilizer and nourishment to the project. Julie Nakagawa, Co-Founder and Artistic Director of DanceWorks Chicago (DWC) attended the New Dances 2017 performance at the Athenaeum Theater, and through conversation it became clear that each organization shares valued and vital common ground, carrying tenacious dedication to the art form, to the Chicago dance community, and to emerging and established artists. 

Currently in their 7th year of partnership for New Dances, TDC and DWC have expanded the project exponentially, deepening the roots and widening the branches with shared resources and structural innovation within, becoming even more mature and fully grown. The project now reaches much further into the community to find and produce the talented and diverse creative voices not of just one company as before, but from the rich spectrum of ALL dance movers and makers in Chicago’s creative garden. 

Of New Dances today, Co-founder Barbara Stein shares, “I am personally grateful that the spirit of New Dances has been sustained, growing and shifting with the changing times, continuing to offer opportunity and visibility for those talented individuals who are brave enough to share their vision and ideas.”

See Chicago Dance invites you to celebrate Chicago Dance Month with On The Move! Enjoy site-specific, outdoor dance performances set against the natural beauty of Palmisano Park (2700 S Halsted)!

Wander winding paths, scale limestone hills, and discover pop-up performances throughout the park by a thrilling mix of artists representing global traditions, contemporary styles, and gravity-defying movement.

There are two chances to catch On The Move:

👉 On The Move #1

Tuesday, June 17, 2025

5:30–7:00 PM

Palmisano Park, 2700 S Halsted

Featuring performances by Aerial Dance Chicago, BYNC Ballet Folklórico, Chibuck Movement, Raks Inferno, Shubukai, Silambam Houston, and Yin He Dance!

👉 On The Move #2

Tuesday, June 24, 2025

5:30–7:00 PM

Palmisano Park, 2700 S Halsted

Featuring performances by Anniela Huidobro Castro, Bodies of Water, Chicago Flying Fairies Culture and Arts Center, Michelle Haskell, Sildance/Acrodanza, Symbiosis Arts, and Winifred Haun & Dancers!

All Chicago Dance Month programming is FREE and family-friendly! Click here to learn more!

We are grateful for your thoughtful consideration to support our Match Campaign for New Dances 2025.

Each donated dollar up to $4,000 will be matched courtesy of a generous donation from Compliance Program Management LLC, David R. Hall and Michael C. Nugent plus a cohort of passionate and generous (and anonymous) donors. Double your impact today and consider investing in our shared creative future. It takes a village to bring this very special project in Chicago to life. 

Checks may be made out to Thodos Dance Chicago and mailed to 1016 N Dearborn St, Chicago, IL 60610. Electronic payment may be made via our website through the "Donate Now" button below.

Donations received by Wednesday, June 11 will be acknowledged in the New Dances 2025 program. Thank you so very much!

Watch above to learn more about New Dances and it’s importance 

to the artists in the Chicago commUNITY!

Video Created by Vin Reed

Thodos Dance Chicago was founded in 1992, by Melissa Thodos, a choreographer, educator and performer for over 30 years. Our mission is to engage and enrich the community through dance creation, advocacy, education, and mentorship.