Ballet Hispanico, long recognized as the nation's leading Latino dance organization, announces auditions for the Second Company, BHdos, the company's pre-professional troupe. Auditions for the troupe will be held on Sunday, February 9, 2014 from 11am-2pm at Ballet Hispanico, 167 W. 89th Street, NYC. Registration begins at 10am.

Auditions are open to male and female dancers ages 18-22 with strong classical and contemporary technique. Dancers are asked to bring a headshot and current resume to the audition. The time commitment for the season is 10-15 hours a week with rehearsals on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays, February through June.

Handpicked by Artistic Director Eduardo Vilaro, the talented pre-professional dancers of Ballet Hispanico's second company form bridges: between the School of Dance and the professional Company, between Ballet Hispanico and the community, and between their own training and careers in dance. Under the guidance of Deputy School Director Nicholas Villeneuve, dancers work with highly-skilled artistic leadership to bring Latino culture to schools, communities and corporations. With engaging and interactive performances, this sixth season of BHdos leads audiences through an exciting 50-minute exploration of dance influenced by Spain and Latin America. Each fully-costumed performance features the impressive choreography from the current Ballet Hispanico repertory.

During the season, BHdos will tour and perform repertory throughout all New York City boroughs, at public and private schools as well as corporate events. With engaging and interactive performances, this sixth season of BHdos leads audiences through an exciting exploration of dance influenced by Spain and Latin America. Each fully-costumed performance features the impressive choreography from the current Ballet Hispanico repertory.

ABOUT BALLET HISPANICO

Celebrating 43 years of dance and culture, Ballet Hispanico is recognized as the nation's premier Latino dance organization. Led by Artistic Director Eduardo Vilaro, the Company boasts a rich and diverse repertory of over 100 works by the foremost choreographers and emerging artists of our time. The works expand on founder Tina Ramirez's legacy of exploring the diversity of Latino culture through a fusion of Latin and contemporary dance powered by theatricality and passion. The Company has performed for an audience of nearly 3 million, throughout 11 countries, on 3 continents. For more information, visit www.ballethispanico.org. Follow Ballet Hispanico on Facebook and Twitter.

EDUARDO VILARO, a first generation Cuban-American, began as artistic director of Ballet Hispanico in August of 2009, becoming only the second person to head the company since it was founded in 1970. Mr. Vilaro has been part of the Ballet Hispanico family since 1985. As a dancer with the Ballet Hispanico Company, he performed throughout the U.S., Latin America and Europe and assisted founder Tina Ramirez with the development of dance education residencies. Mr. Vilaro is also an accomplished choreographer, having created works for the Ravinia Festival, the Chicago Sinfonietta, the Lexington Ballet, the Civic Ballet of Chicago, and over 20 ballets for Luna Negra Dance Theater, the company he founded in Chicago. He received a B.F.A. in Dance from Adelphi University and an M.A. in Interdisciplinary Art from Columbia College Chicago, where he served as Artist-in-Residence at The Dance Center. Mr. Vilaro was a guest speaker at the Salzburg Global Forum for Young Cultural Leaders and the National Association for Latino Arts and Culture, and continues to speak to the growing need for cultural diversity and dance education.