We at the Hartfel Ballet have found it challenging to classify the company and have used contemporary ballet company in an attempt to explain that we really do not fall into any category that we know of.  From what I have seen we should not call ourselves modern ballet, and we are definitely not classical (you will never see a tutu on stage or Petipa's this or that).  After reading the two descriptions above, I would have to say we are closer to contemporary than I would have thought previously.  Purely innovative, a philosophy and practice not found in the tradiitonal ballet world, and more contemporary than what is happening around us.  We dislike the idea that for "convenience" we need to classify ouselves at all.

Unfortunatley it seems the word Contemporary is being used in Los Angeles to primarily refer to any modern company.  Labels are misleading, perhaps we will discontinue its use too, we are the Hartfel Ballet, nothing less.