ANDREAS BÖTTCHER  |  Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder
From Augsburg, Germany, Andreas brings more than 25 years of on and off stage experience to DanceWorks Chicago. After receiving his dance education at the prestigious ballet schools of the John Cranko School in Stuttgart, Germany, as well as the Heinz Bosl Foundation in Munich, Germany, he joined the Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Düsseldorf, Germany. Interested in contemporary dance, Andreas moved to New York City and immersed himself in further studies at the Martha Graham School and the Merce Cunningham Foundation while actively working as a free-lance dancer. He joined Ballet Chicago in 1991 to dance in works by Balanchine, Duell, Parsons, and others. Guesting engagements included appearances with Augsburg Ballet, Cleveland Ballet, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and Ruth Page’s Nutcracker. After his retirement from performing, he joined Hubbard Street Dance Chicago in 1996 as an assistant to Executive Director Gail Kalver. Andreas became HSDC's first Director of Education, serving in that position for 8 years while also establishing and managing Hubbard Street 2 from its inception in 1997 until his departure from Hubbard Street in February 2007. Andreas co-founded DanceWorks Chicago in May 2007.