The Joffrey Academy of Dance will now be the Grainger Academy of the Joffrey Ballet following a $5 million endowed gift to the school, according to an announcement Thursday. The largest gift in the academy’s history came from the Lake Forest-based Grainger Foundation, a philanthropic organization established by William Wallace Grainger of the industrial supply company W.W. Grainger, Inc. The name change takes effect immediately.
Grainger’s first gift to the Joffrey Ballet came in 2016, with funding to support a documentary film on the making of choreographer Christopher Wheeldon’s “Nutcracker.” In 2020, the foundation made a $1 million, five-year commitment to fund scholarships for Joffrey Academy students, and made a $1 million gift to the endowment in 2022.
The donation allows the academy to continue offering scholarships to dancers in training.
“They are fully supported financially so that they can be here and working with us all the time,” academy director Suzanne Lopez said in an interview Wednesday. “It’s so important that they don’t have to work three other jobs while they’re trying to study.”
In her first year as director, Lopez pushed to expand wrap-around support for 10 pre-professional dancers selected for Joffrey’s Studio Company, including providing housing, dancewear and shoes, physical therapy and a cash stipend. Studio Company dancers take classes and occasionally perform with the professional Joffrey company and are provided with audition support as they launch their careers.
It’s a unique model that Lopez said will help attract the best talent to Joffrey’s Studio Company. Many of the country’s biggest ballet companies have pre-professional troupes; few provide that opportunity at no cost to the dancers.
“Housing is a big issue for some of our students,” Lopez said. “It can be the make-or-break decision of them coming here or going somewhere else.”
Another goal is to expand the academy’s Chicago-area student base so even young dancers can see themselves becoming a professional dancer. The academy’s two tuition-based post-secondary programs, the classical and contemporary trainees, are also eligible for scholarships.
“We’re not just finding people who are already top-tier dancers. We want to train you to become a top tier dancer, wherever you’re from,” Lopez said. “If you don’t have the financial means to do that, we can now help and support you.”
Lopez also hopes the money can provide resources in other ways, such as strengthening the curriculum and ensuring every class has live musical accompaniment.
“I’ve learned a lot this year about pacing the growth,” she said. “I want to make sure the faculty feel valued and taken care of. That’s been a big push this year and I’m going to continue that. And I have goals for the future. I want more boys and this potential for scholarships is going to help with that. There are lots of things in the pipeline.”
Lopez danced in the Joffrey Ballet from 1991 to 2010 and served as rehearsal director of the professional company from 2016 to 2023, when she moved into her current role as academy director. It was a symbolic sign of stability for the academy, which occupies a floor of Joffrey Tower in Chicago’s theater district. Her appointment came after years of turnover in academy leadership and is a sign of stability for the future of Joffrey’s official school — which is just 15 years old.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Lopez said. “This is my home and the success of everyone involved is so important to me.”
Lauren Warnecke is a freelance critic.
