PHOTOS: Inside Ballet Hispánico’s 56th Anniversary Gala

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PHOTOS: Inside Ballet Hispánico’s 56th Anniversary Gala

Dancers of the Ballet Hispánico Company. Santiago Felipe

There’s something right about a ballet company that kicks off its annual spring gala in a world-class fashion and ends it with a packed dance floor. Ballet Hispánico has been approaching its triumphs as it approaches a triumphant art form: with a creative, joyful and irresistible force. Last week, more than 330 dance enthusiasts, lifestyle enthusiasts, community leaders and tastemakers gathered at two of New York’s most storied venues for the company’s 56th Anniversary Gala.

The well-planned evening was a lesson in positive change. In New York City Center, guests moved from the carpet and cocktail hour to the performance of MUJERES: Women on the Movefeaturing the work of three Latina producers—Cassi Abranches, Stephanie Martinez and gala honoree Annabelle Lopez Ochoa-each of whom approaches Latino identity and life through a contemporary lens, producing work that feels culturally grounded and contemporary.

Dancer in the Ballet Hispánico School program. Michael Ostuni/PMC/PMC

From there, gala-goers headed to the Plaza for awards, trophies and a Latin-themed dinner. Lopez Ochoa, the Belgian-Colombian choreographer who created one of the most diverse bodies of ballet work today, went on to receive the 2026 Artistic Inspiración Award. He was joined in the evening’s honoring by Donald B. Verrilli, Jr.the 46th Solicitor General of the United States under President Barack Obama, who received the company’s 2026 Civic Inspiración Award.

The guest list was as richly laid out as the show itself. Alongside the honorees, the crowd in the Plaza demonstrated the breadth of Ballet Hispánico’s reach across culture, compassion and public life. A cultural commission appeared in the crowd Diya VijState Senator Jose M. Serrano and Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal; President of New York City Center Michael S. Rosenberg and president and CEO of the Howard Gilman Foundation Laura Aden; the producer Kate Lear and a storied arts patron Judith-Ann Corrente; Tony and Olivier award-winning choreographer Sergio Trujillo and the actor Ismael Cruz Córdova; fashion designers Carlos Campos again Megan Key; and the maker Prima Love.

When all was said and done, the chamber—which included many choreographers and dancers—had raised more than $1,465,000 to support Ballet Hispánico’s artistic, educational and community outreach programs, including $265,000 dedicated to scholarships for students of the revolutionary School of Ballet Hispánico. After a short performance by the school’s talented young dancers, the Spanish Harlem Orchestra took the stage, and guests took to the dance floor. The end of the night was an example of how Ballet Hispánico always works: by moving people first, and letting charity follow.