Los Angeles has been a welcoming home for dance for more than a century, and over that time the Hollywood Bowl and The Ford have given it center stage. In the 1920s and ’30s, visionary choreographers like Ruth St. Denis, Lester Horton, and Agnes de Mille used the vast outdoor platform of the Hollywood Bowl to stretch the boundaries of movement and meaning.
In her 1996 article “How the Bowl Danced: An Era of Exploration,” Naima Prevots, the first curator of the Hollywood Bowl Museum, explains, “Dance pioneers came to Los Angeles and saw it as a utopian place to teach, create, and try out their new ideas. By providing a prestigious venue for choreographers and dancers, the Hollywood Bowl became an active partner in allowing American dance to develop and mature.”
Throughout the next decades, the Bowl would evolve into a significant stop for touring companies such as the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, which performed for three nights in 1941; Martha Graham; Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev and the Royal Ballet; and New York City Ballet.
Today, that legacy is alive and leaping across the stages of both the Bowl and The Ford in performances that speak to tradition, innovation, and the pulse of the city itself.
This month at the Bowl, ballet meets fireworks in a very LA kind of romance. The Tchaikovsky Spectacular (July 18–19, 2025) welcomes back San Francisco Ballet in a sweeping evening that includes Swan Lake, Capriccio Italien, and of course as the grand finale, the 1812 Overture, with cannon fire and pyrotechnics lighting up the night. Carlos Miguel Prieto conducts, returning after his triumphant debut last season with Ballet Folklórico de México (which made its US debut—also at the Bowl—in 1962). This year, the spectacular is matched by elegance, as music and motion share the spotlight.
Then on September 11, 2025, the Bowl turns to Shakespeare. In the concert Romeo, Juliet & Dance Theatre of Harlem, the star-crossed lovers are reimagined through Prokofiev’s bold score, Tchaikovsky’s yearning overture, and the expressive power of dance. Dance Theatre of Harlem, joined by conductor Jonathon Heyward, also premieres choreography to Adolphus Hailstork’s Symphony No. 1, bridging continents and cultures with a movement language all its own.
Meanwhile, The Ford offers an up-close, heart-forward look at how dance lives in community. On August 16, 2025, Grandeza Mexicana Folk Ballet Company explores Mexico’s rich wedding traditions in Serenatas y Bodas de México, complete with mariachi serenades and a stunning new piece inspired by Oaxaca’s muxes. A week later, Lula Washington Dance Theatre celebrates 45 years of activism, artistry, and Afro-diasporic storytelling with a program that includes revivals of classics and two powerful new premieres—one a tribute to the late saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, the other inspired by African American folklore and spirituality.
And for the next generation of movers and shakers? The LA Soundscapes family series transforms The Ford into a joyous playground of rhythm and imagination. UniverSOUL Hip Hop’s WonderLAnd! (August 17, 2025) is a three-part celebration of dance, creativity, and community, while Kim Eung Hwa & Korean Dance Company’s Hangawi (September 14, 2025) brings Korea’s autumn festival traditions to life with fan dances, drums, and dazzling color.
The story of dance in Los Angeles has always been one of experimentation, inclusion, and breathtaking beauty. This summer, it’s told in fireworks and folklorico, in pointe shoes and sneakers. The stage is set—and LA moves.