Ballet D’Jèrri: Footsteps / Sand and Their Castles

Ballet D’Jèrri makes its Jersey Opera House debut with the return of two audience favourites and BDJ original creations by choreographers Garrett Smith and Tess Voelker.

In Footsteps, Garrett Smith reflects on the chance intersections that shape the world around us. Smith wanted to portray the fleeting nature of human interaction and the idea that connection does not need to be permanent to be impactful. A former dancer with Houston Ballet and Norwegian National Ballet, Smith is known for work that combines striking physicality and nuanced dynamics.

Sand and Their Castles, by Tess Voelker, is a wacky and intimate meditation on the experience of passing from adolescence to adulthood. With a movement language that blends dance and theatre, Voelker evokes both the mournful loss and exuberant reclamation of childhood—drawing audiences into a world of convoluted memory, awkward tenderness, and self-realisation. Voelker is a rising star in contemporary dance, following her career as a dancer with Netherlands Dance Theatre and an appointment as associate choreographer with le Ballet de l'Opéra national de Paris.

This performance marks Ballet D’Jèrri’s first on the main stage of the newly restored Jersey Opera House, which now serves as the company’s home. The evening celebrates not only two distinctive choreographic voices, but also a significant milestone for Jersey’s cultural landscape and BDJ's place within it as the island's national dance company.

For more information about the Pay What You Can Structure please visit the Ballet D’Jerri website at https://www.ballet.je/paywhatyoucan