Bejart Ballet Lausanne

What Bejart Ballet Lausanne does

Béjart Ballet Lausanne (BBL) is a private professional ballet company founded in 1987 by the late choreographer Maurice Béjart and headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland. The company fields 44 professional dancers supported by 70 touring artists and technicians, presenting approximately 20 distinct programs across roughly 80 performances per season to about 100,000 spectators worldwide. Operations include annual touring covering approximately 250,000 kilometers and a production infrastructure producing around 1,200 costumes per season and 2,500 pairs of dance shoes per year.

The organization's revenue model is multi-stream and characteristic of a major European cultural institution. Performance ticket sales (distributed through the Ticketcorner platform and partner venues such as Théâtre de Beaulieu, Opéra de Lausanne, and international houses) are supplemented by a tiered Cercle des Amis membership program (seven tiers ranging from CHF 50 to over CHF 5,000 annually), multi-tier corporate partnerships (First Partner, Main Partner, National Partner, Official Partner), VIP hospitality packages for groups of 10+, private and foundation patronage, and modest direct-to-consumer merchandise sales through an online boutique. Substantial institutional support flows from the City of Lausanne, the Fonds intercommunal de soutien aux Institutions culturelles, and the Loterie Romande. The company operates an annual budget of approximately CHF 12 million.

The current strategic posture reflects a post-founder and post-second-generation leadership transition: Gil Roman, who led artistic direction from 2007 following Maurice Béjart's death, concluded his tenure in February 2024, with Régina Zwahlen now serving as Director. The repertoire continues to expand through commissioned works from guest choreographers including Giorgio Madia, Marc Holologne, Joost Vrouenraets, and Alonzo King, complemented by the Rudra Béjart training school and the Plan_B venue. Audience development efforts include the "Le Ballet dans la Ville" outdoor outreach program supported by Nestlé.

Name

Bejart Ballet Lausanne

Legal name

Béjart Ballet Lausanne

Website

https://bejart.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Béjart Ballet Lausanne is a Lausanne-based professional ballet company with 44 dancers and 70 touring personnel, presenting 80 performances per season to 100,000 spectators globally, funded through ticket sales, tiered memberships, corporate partnerships, and public cultural subsidies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Performing Arts

NAICS

Dance Companies (711120)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Classical Ballet (Full-Length & Repertoire) (MPAGADAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Theater, Musicals & Performing Arts (THAJAFAB)

Keywords

• Professional ballet performances
• Contemporary dance company
• Ballet merchandise retail
• Corporate arts sponsorship
• Ballet membership program

Headquarters

HQ city

Lausanne

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Performance Revenue: Ticket sales from 80 annual performances across international venues reaching 100,000 spectators
2. Corporate Partnerships: Sponsorship revenue from First Partner, Main Partner, National Partner, and Official Partner tiers, including VIP experiences and hospitality packages
3. Membership Program: Annual membership fees from the Cercle des Amis with tiers ranging from CHF 50 to over CHF 5,000 annually, offering various benefits and access levels
4. Retail/Boutique: E-commerce sales of merchandise including DVDs, books, textiles, accessories, posters, and Cadanse program magazines
5. Patronage: Private and foundation patronage supporting artistic development and creative activity

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Béjart Ballet Lausanne is a professional ballet company that produces and presents live ballet performances featuring 44 professional dancers, performing approximately 80 times per season across international venues and touring about 250,000 km per year. Beyond live performance, the company operates an e-commerce boutique selling ballet-related merchandise (DVDs, books, textiles, accessories, posters, fine art, Cadanse program magazines), a tiered Cercle des Amis membership program, and corporate VIP hospitality and sponsorship partnership packages.

Product overview

Bejart Ballet Lausanne is a world-renowned professional ballet company based in Lausanne, Switzerland, operating as a cultural organization rather than a traditional software technology company. The organization's offerings consist of: (1) Professional ballet performances featuring 44 dancers presenting 20 programs per season with approximately 80 annual performances across 250,000 km of touring; (2) An e-commerce boutique selling ballet-related merchandise including DVDs, books, posters, textiles, accessories, fine arts, and Cadanse program magazines; (3) Membership programs (Cercle des Amis) with seven contribution tiers from CHF 50 to CHF 5,000+ annually; (4) Corporate partnership and VIP hospitality packages for businesses. The company maintains an annual budget of 12 million CHF and reaches 100,000 annual spectators globally.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Plan_B: A venue/space operated by the company
• Cadanse
• Boutique

Products and services

• Béjart Ballet Lausanne Performances
• Rhapsody in Blue
• Nivagation
• Bye bye baby blackbird
• Alors on danse...!
• Swan Song
• Figures of Thought
• Ex Orbis
• Boutique (Online Store)

Quantifiable outcome

• 100,000 annual spectators from around the world
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Ville de LausannecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCity of Lausanne has been a pioneer in cultural politics supporting dance since the 1980s, providing essential financial and institutional support for choreography development and maintaining Lausanne's identity as an international capital city for choreography with nearly 30 years of BBL presence.
• Fonds intercommunal de soutien aux Institutions culturellescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional intercommunal fund established in 1988 supporting cultural institutions including BBL, Opéra de Lausanne, Théâtre de Vidy, and Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne with annual funding distributed by a management committee.
• Loterie RomandecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBenefactor foundation providing financial support for the company's development and artistic creation.
• Fondation Maurice BéjartcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation supporting the legacy and continued artistic development of the Béjart Ballet Lausanne.
• NestlémajorGTM or Marketing PartnerYouth partner through Nestlé Cares for Communities program, supporting outreach activities including workshops and 'Le Ballet dans la Ville' outdoor performances to introduce ballet to young local audiences.
• Le TempsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPromotional partner and only French-language daily newspaper with nationwide reach in Switzerland, providing media coverage and press support.
• TicketcornermajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOfficial ticketing partner for selling performance tickets to the public through their platform.
• AgefiminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSwiss daily newspaper devoted to economy and finance, promotional partner for BBL communications.
• CARACminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFrench-speaking Swiss private TV channel, promotional partner providing media coverage.
• LFMminorGTM or Marketing PartnerNumber one private radio station in French-speaking Switzerland, promotional partner.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Stuttgart Ballet: Stuttgart Ballet is one of Europe's leading companies with an internationally recognized choreographic tradition (Cranko and successors), touring internationally and supported by public and corporate partners — analogous to BBL's Béjart-rooted identity and touring model.
• Paris Opera Ballet: The Paris Opera Ballet is the oldest national ballet company in the world and BBL has explicitly performed at its Palais Garnier venue. Both operate as prestigious, publicly-supported ballet institutions staging classical and contemporary repertoire and competing for top-tier international venues and choreographers.
• American Ballet Theatre: ABT is a major U.S. ballet company combining classical full-length works with contemporary commissions and extensive international touring — closely paralleling BBL's hybrid repertoire model and reliance on corporate/hospitality revenue.
• Dutch National Ballet: The Dutch National Ballet is a publicly supported European ballet company with a comparable mix of classical heritage and contemporary commissions, similarly drawing on government funding, memberships and corporate sponsorship.
• Hamburg Ballett: The Hamburg Ballett is a leading German city ballet known for international touring and contemporary commissions alongside classical repertoire, paralleling BBL's mix of inherited canon and new choreography under city/cantonal support.
• Royal Ballet (London): The Royal Ballet is one of the world's leading ballet companies, similarly combining classical heritage with commissioned contemporary work, extensive international touring, and multi-tier corporate partnership/membership programs that anchor recurring revenue.
• New York City Ballet: NYCB is a globally touring ballet company with a defined choreographic canon and active commissioning of new work, comparable to BBL's structure of inherited repertoire plus new commissions, premium ticketing, and corporate sponsorships.
• San Francisco Ballet: SFB is one of North America's largest ballet companies with significant international touring, premium ticketing, and a multi-tier patron/membership program — directly comparable to BBL's monetization model.
• Les Grands Ballets Canadiens: Les Grands Ballets is a French-speaking ballet company with a similar mix of classical and contemporary work and comparable reliance on public funding and corporate sponsorship, making it a close regional/linguistic peer.

Broad incumbents

• Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater: Alvin Ailey is a broader performing-arts institution combining a resident dance company, education, and international touring. It overlaps with BBL on touring scale, membership programs, and brand-led revenue but operates in modern dance rather than classical ballet.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/bejartballet
• Facebookfacebook.com/Bejart.Ballet.Lausanne
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bejart-ballet-lausanne

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bejart Ballet Lausanne