A St. Paul Ballet company and school said Wednesday that a trailer and the traveling floor inside were stolen from outside its studios.
The theft from the home of the St. Paul Ballet, on Fairview Avenue N. north of University Avenue, occurred sometime over the weekend, an official with the nonprofit said. The company set the value of the stolen trailer and floor at $11,000.
The company would take the floor on the road for 25 community outreach performances a year, according to company Artistic Director Zoe Emilie Henrot.
Henrot said in a statement outlining the crime that "the trailer hitch had been locked and the trailer chained to a post outside of the building. Both ... were [found to have been] cut when staff discovered the trailer missing on Sunday morning."
The trailer was customized to carry carts holding the floor, which was used for performances at Landmark Center in St. Paul, the Mall of America and other locales around the Twin Cities.
A grant through the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council helped fund the purchase of the trailer and floor.
The St. Paul Ballet has called its current location home for the past three years and has never been the victim of a crime.
"This building and community have been very safe," said St. Paul Ballet Executive Director Lori Gleason. "What is sad is that we utilize the trailer and equipment to reach thousands of small children at our free Ballet Tuesdays at Landmark Center and Mall of America."
Police say the trailer was last seen about 7 p.m. Saturday and stolen sometime before 8:30 the next morning.
The white trailer is a United brand and measures 6 by 12 feet. The carts of flooring hold blue foam tiles, hardboard and black plastic tiles. Anyone with information about the theft can call police at 651-291-1111.
Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482
