Every great ballet company needs a laboratory, and Kansas City Ballet’s is called “New Moves” — the annual showcase, running January 28–31, 2027, where choreographers (often the company’s own dancers) premiere brand-new works in the intimate Bolender Center studio theatre.
The format is irresistibly close-up: small casts, bold music choices and choreography that ranges from lyrical to laugh-out-loud, all performed steps away from the audience. Many pieces born here have grown into main-stage commissions.
For audiences, New Moves is the season’s best adventure-per-dollar: the thrill of seeing tomorrow’s choreographers today, in a room where you can hear the dancers breathe.
Tradition built this company; New Moves is where it renews itself, one premiere at a time.

