Smuin Ballet was founded in 1994 by Michael Smuin, known for infusing classical ballet with “the rhythm, speed, and syncopation of American popular culture,” according to the nonprofit’s website. In 2019 the company relocated to Potrero Hill. Amy Seiwert became its artistic director last summer.
“I moved to San Francisco in 1999 to dance for Smuin Ballet. I was a dancer with the company for nine years and most of those were with Michael when he was still alive. When I retired [as a dancer], Celia invited me to become the company’s Choreographer in Residence, which was a position I kept for a decade,” said Seiwert.
Seiwert’s new role coincides with Smuin’s 30th anniversary and the retirement of longtime artistic director Celia Fushille.
“I say that I inherited two legacies, both Michael’s and Celia’s,” said Seiwert. “He was very much about creation and choreographing and new work, and then Celia was about curation, which means she was bringing in choreographers from all over the planet to create these dances, and I get to do that now, too. Smuin is a contemporary ballet company, and we come from a classical ballet base. But we’re very interested in using that language to see what else it can say, not to look back so much historically, but to look forward. Swan Lake is an amazing story, but we’re not going to put a prince and princess on stage. It’s much more about people and stories our audiences will recognize, a reflection on contemporary life.”
With a $5 million operating budget, Smuin is working to close a budget gap caused when the San Francisco Grants for the Arts (GFTA) changed its grantmaking criteria in 2023. GFTA receives its funding from hotel tax revenue, established in 2018 by Proposition E, Hotel Tax for the Arts.
“We went from $150,000 to $38,000 annually from the GFTA due to a lower ranking score in 2023. Last year we increased our ranking and our annual increase [in funding] was $238,” said Managing Director Lori Laqua.
A new GFTA director was appointed by City Administrator Carmen Chu last fall, Kristen Jacobson, a former professional dancer and nonprofit executive.
“I have great hopes for her, I think she’s been on both sides of the funding equation,” said Laqua.
“Smuin has been a long-time valued grantee of Grants for the Arts,” said Jacobson. “One of GFTA’s goals for Fiscal Year 2025 grants was to support sustainability by not diminishing any organizations funds in light of the City’s budget deficit. Not one organization that qualified for funding in both FY24 and FY25 received a decrease in their specific grant program amount. I think this reflects the City’s deep investment and commitment to supporting arts and cultural organizations.”
To replace missing municipal monies, Smuin has established “funds for the future” to support different aspects of the company’s work.
“We have a Michael Smuin Fund, which is to make sure that we can continue to put on his work. Then there’s the Celia Fund, which is to honor what she did with the company for commissioning new works and licensing existing works from national and international choreographers. And then we have the Dancers Fund, which [contributes to our] ability to perhaps compensate them more than the annual cost of living increase,” said Laqua.
“Because it’s such a small company we only have 16 dancers at a full capacity. You get to know the dancers very, very quickly, even inside of a show you’ll see a single dancer dance four different roles, and you’ve seen them in so many iterations of themselves across that one evening,” said Warner.
Friends of Smuin, a group of engaged audience members, also raises money for the troupe.
“They’re an auxiliary board, and they put on several events a year, for example, opening night parties or opening night dinners. They also host a fundraiser at Roche Winery, in Sonoma every spring,” said Laqua.
Smuin offers youth lessons. Potrero Hill Montessori School students attend weekly ballet classes. The San Francisco Rotary Club has funded a free youth program, ConfiDance, offered at Smuin’s studio and the Boys & Girls Club in Mission Creek.
“ConfiDance is a class for children ages six to nine that is an entirely free program. It’s kind of all styles of movement. It uses movement-based exercises to build self-expression, self-confidence, teamwork, and leadership,” said Community Engagement Manager & Rehearsal Assistant Ben Warner. “We’re trying to build ways in which our space can become a creative hub for San Francisco dancing. We started a choreographic residency process which enables discounted rent of our space when we are off site.”
The company travels often, performing in Walnut Creek, Carmel, and Mountain View.
“Anyone in Potrero Hill, if they want to stop by, take a tour, we’re always there. You’re welcome to stop in, watch rehearsal. We’ve got those big windows. Squash your face on it, we’ll wave,” said Warner.
“In the spring we’re going to do a piece by choreographer Trey McIntyre called Wild Sweet Love, and the music ranges from Mendelssohn’s Wedding March to The Partridge Family, to Somebody to Love by Queen,” said Seiwert. “I will be doing a world premiere, and we also have on the program an iconic piece by our founder, Michael Smuin called Eternal Idol.”
“Having completed Dance Series 1 of our fall series, [I] can feel it is pushing us to the future. And you know we’re seeing Amy’s vision through her choice of programming. There’s all of this great stuff that we’re carrying forward. We have midlife momentum.” said Laqua, “[Seiwert] truly is the past, present, and future. She embodies it all, that’s what’s exciting to me. What will she think of next?”
The Christmas Ballet will be performed December 13 to 24 at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. LGBTQ+ night on December 20 will feature former company dancer Lady Camden, who was a first runner up on RuPaul’s Drag Race.
Jessica Zimmer 
Alina Ferguson