The passions of Alejandro Cerrudo: Creativity, diversity and now, the Charlotte Ballet

When Alejandro Cerrudo was growing up in Madrid, he was enamored with dance.

By age 9, he started taking classes. But it was VHS tapes that really hooked him.

“There were so many great male dancers that I admired, stars like Rudolf Nureyev, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Fernando Bujones. Through those videos, my passion started to grow.”

Learning the steps? Not so much. “The work in the studio — ballet class — was not that exciting at first,” he said. “So having access to all those videos helped me realize why I was doing what I was doing in class, and how exciting it could be.”

And now, Cerrudo is channeling his passion into Charlotte Ballet. Last May, the 42-year-old joined the ballet as its new artistic director.

At the time, the ballet’s board lauded his focus on creating an inclusive and diverse dance culture, which aligns with the ballet’s mission. Cerrudo follows the ballet’s former artistic director, Hope Muir, who is now artistic director of the National Ballet of Canada.

Cerrudo recently spoke with The Charlotte Observer about how he got involved in dance, his impressions of Charlotte and his plans for his first season at the helm of the ballet. As artistic director, Cerrudo sets the artistic vision, curates the programming and serves as the public face of the ballet.

“I have a great first impression of the company and look forward to this first season,” he said.

“I’m not going to fix what’s not broken,” Cerrudo added. “I’m not a person to impose my idea without listening to everybody else on the team… Observing is key for me, so I’m bringing fresh eyes and asking questions.”

He’s watching sis go pitter-pat

It was Cerrudo’s older sister who ignited his lifelong love of dance.

“As a young kid, I wanted to do everything that my older sister wanted to do.”

She loved dance, so he enrolled at the Royal Conservatory of Dance in Madrid, and graduated in 1998. “At (that) time, it was particularly hard for a boy to go to dance classes,” he said. “It was not the norm.

“I imagined myself on stage, with the lights and costumes and the story,” Cerrudo said. “Dance is transmitting something only through movement with music. It felt very special. I found it very powerful.”

Experience and perspective

Cerrudo brings deep experience to his new role.

He came to Charlotte from Seattle’s Pacific Northwest Ballet, where he served as the company’s first resident choreographer. Prior to that, Cerrudo lived in Chicago for 17 years, where he served as the first resident choreographer for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, a role he held from 2008 to 2018.

Some of Cerrudo’s own creative pursuits include “Sleeping Beauty,” which he created with Ballet Theater Basel in 2016, and was nominated as Production of the Year in Switzerland by the New Zurich Times.

In 2020, he directed and choreographed “It Starts Now,” which premiered at The Joyce Theater in New York. Additional stops on his professional path include work with Victor Ullate Ballet in Madrid, Stuttgart Ballet and Nederlands Dans Theater 2.

“There’s always something to take from the places I’ve worked, and as a choreographer,” Cerrudo said. “Living in Germany, Netherlands, Spain and in the U.S., and working with so many people, that has given me a wide perspective on things.”

New role, new city

Since arriving in Charlotte in late spring, Cerrudo and his family have been getting to know the city, exploring neighborhoods and looking to put down roots.

“I love it here,” he said. “The people, the weather, the community... There’s so much for me to discover.”

He’s especially impressed by Charlotte’s momentum. “The growth is amazing,” he said. “You can see it and feel it, and you hear it constantly. It feels good to be here right now.”

Expanding diversity at Charlotte Ballet

Cerrudo’s experience, that broad perspective he’s gained over the years, pushes him toward enhancing Charlotte Ballet’s mission of diversity and access, on stage and off.

“Diversity is one of the pillars of what I believe in moving forward, and I talked a lot about it throughout the hiring process,” he said. “Charlotte Ballet is already doing the work. And I know we are all aware that that work needs to continue and to intensify.”

He says his vision of diversity is the broadest possible: “Yes, race, but also gender and sexual orientation and cultural background, and those with disabilities. The more diverse our company is, our community is, the richer we’re going to be, and the more enriching the organization will be.”

This season, he looks forward to Fall Works in October, which will feature Helen Pickett’s “IN Cognito,” created for Charlotte Ballet in 2019, with inspiration from North Carolina author Tom Robbins. And for the first time in Charlotte, the company will present “Under the Lights,” choreographed by Charlotte Ballet II Director Christopher Stuart and set to the music of Johnny Cash.

Next February, Innovative Works will feature one of Cerrudo’s own works, “Silent Ghost,” which he choreographed in 2013.

Of that performance, the Seattle Times wrote, “If life were kind, I would spend the remainder of this year watching Noelani Pantastico and Lucien Postlewaite’s pas de deux from Alejandro Cerrudo’s glorious “Silent Ghost” on endless loop.”

“It’s a work I’m very proud of,” Cerrudo said, “and I think it’ll be great for the audiences to experience.”

Innovative Works will also feature works by Jennifer Archibald, founder and director of the Arch Dance Company in New York City, and Helen Simoneau, 2021 Guggenheim Fellow and a UNC School of the Arts alum.

Seeking feedback and collaboration

Cerrudo is also excited about meeting the ballet’s audience.

“You can plan and plot,” he said. “But I’m hungry to be there and to see and experience and hear about how we can bring more people to see what we do, to inspire and to present a great night out.”

Cerrudo also has plans to collaborate with the Charlotte Symphony beyond “Nutcracker,” and has been having conversations with other leaders from Charlotte arts organizations about future projects.

“Dance is both high-art level but also entertaining,” he said. “When you achieve both, it’s the best feeling.

“I have a passion to really push forward. And I want our audience to feel what they had is still there, but with a new energy,” Cerrudo said. “If you haven’t come to see the ballet before, something exciting is about to start.”

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This story was originally published September 7, 2022 at 6:00 AM with the headline "The passions of Alejandro Cerrudo: Creativity, diversity and now, the Charlotte Ballet."