Renowned for their powerful stage presence, Philadelphia's Koresh Dance Company has been hailed as a vital force 
to both national and international stages. Koresh Dance Company was founded in 1991 by Israeli born
choreographer and artistic director Ronen Koresh and his brother, executive director Alon Koresh. The company presents repertory which includes over 60 works by Ronen Koresh as well as work by guest choreographers including Robert Battle, Donald Byrd and Itzik Galili. Roni is an artist who draws on his life experiences and the culture that surrounds him to create new work. From these life experiences, Roni has developed a repertory of work that ranges from explosive and passionate to intimate and restrained.
Koresh Dance Company has received local, national and international recognition. The company has been honored to receive the Philadelphia City Paper's Reader's Choice Award for Best Dance Company for consecutive years, most recently in 2007. Dance Magazine, the nation's premiere dance publication, featured the company in its August 2004 issue, with an in-depth article and three full page photos. In February 2008, the company was also featured in an article about the thriving dance community in Philadelphia. Roni is a multi-year recipient of choreography fellowships from The Pew Charitable Trusts, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and the Philadelphia College of Performing Arts. The company remains on the the roster of Pennsylvania Performing Arts on Tour (a program developed and funded by The Heinz Endowments; the William Penn Foundation; the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency; and The Pew Charitable Trusts; and administered by Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation).
Koresh Dance Company's critically
acclaimed work attracts increasing audiences across the nation and abroad, and their
reputation for passion and outstanding technique results in
sold-out performances. In 2007, to further support our ability to present high quality dance performances, we added an apprentice program. Currently, the company has two apprentices who train at the Koresh School of Dance, rehearse with the company while on contract and perform during the Philadelphia season. The company presents annual home season concerts at the Suzanne Roberts Theatre,
home of Philadelphia Theatre Company. In addition, the company performs at various national festivals and performing arts centers and tours internationally to destinations including Turkey, South Korea and Israel. Koresh Dance Company is making it known to the world that Philadelphia engenders creativity and artistic excellence!
Opened in 1993, the Koresh School of Dance has remained dedicated to its goal of being a dance training center for the Philadelphia community. With two studios in the heart of Center City Philadelphia, the location offers 68 weekly classes to children and adults in our community. During a typical week, approximately 1,000 dance students pass through the studio doors. We offer a wide variety of movement instruction to students of all ages, beginners to professionals. Classes include ballet, jazz, modern, hip hop, tap and Pilates. We also offer several toddler classes including Creative Movement and Pre Ballet. Now in its second year, the Koresh Youth Ensemble was formed to give serious, young dancers greater opportunities for training and performance. Members have the opportunity to work with teachers from Koresh Dance Company and learn Koresh repertory.
Koresh Dance Company is also committed to community outreach. We have two segments within our programming: Koresh Kids Dance and the Koresh Artist Showcase. Koresh Kids Dance promotes the arts and brings arts education directly to underserved children in our community through dance classes taught in the schools. The Koresh Artist Showcase, a bi-monthly event, was created in an effort to give options to emerging talent in the community and more specifically to give them a platform to present their work. In giving artists a space to house their work, we are nurturing and supporting the future musicians, painters, actors, photographers and independent choreographers of Philadelphia.