Queensland Ballet Welcomes Ivan Gil-Ortega

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Thu 20 Feb 2025

A Guardian of the Ballet Art Form Comes to Town

Welcome Ceremony; Ivan Gil-Ortega

February 20th marked the official welcoming ceremony of the 7th Artistic Director of the Queensland Ballet. Ivan Gil-Ortega, an international ballet professional, is filling the shoes of 65 years of artistic direction from ballet luminaries such as Li Cunxin and, recently, Greg Horseman.

Today was a time not only to look forward but also to acknowledge the legacy of these directors. It was warmly acknowledged that these past artistic directors have already imbued the company with their courage, vision, and tenacity.

So what will Ivan bring to the role?

Listening to his speech and that of Delshani Werasinga, executive director, it was clear to me what the vision and direction would be.

His essential role is to be a guardian of this art form and ensure its relevance in a rapidly changing and financially dynamic world.

This is by no means a small feat given the competing demands on our attention in a media-infused society.
It makes sense to draw upon the skills of someone who is classically trained yet clearly has a fresh modern approach as well as substantial international links to the ballet world.


Here are some of the directions mentioned today that Ivan will champion:
1. Keeping a clear focus on the dancers themselves; enriching their careers with wit with interesting and stretching choreography and international opportunities.
2. Cross-genre collaborations with other art forms including theatre and
Choral groups such as the Australian Voices
3. The encouragement of more males in the ballet corps
4. Emphasis on the ballet academies seeing these as the backbone of the
Company with not just technical brilliance but also artistry
5. Maximising the use of their excellent facilities such as the Talbot theatre
6. Driving excellence in many arenas; including stagecraft, pushing
boundaries of dancers’ experiences and undergirding the craft by
building strong business relationships

Best of all, like all great leaders, he sees that his role is not about him or his personal ego - it is about the dancers, the company, the audience and loyal supporters who have existed before and will continue long after his tenure.



His gentle footprint on the company has the potential to be a strong and lasting one by virtue of his ability to listen to all their voices and weave their different needs into a harmonious whole.

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