5,700 STUDENTS EXPECTED FOR JOFFREY II PROGRAM

Members of the Joffrey II Dancers will present lecture-demonstrations for Orange County fourth-graders and special education students at 9:45 and 11 a.m. on Sept. 23 at the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa.

About 5,700 students are expected to attend the educational programs, which are sponsored by a grant provided jointly by the Los Angeles Times and its parent firm, Times Mirror Co. The students are to be selected by individual school districts.

The Joffrey II, 16 dancers ages 17 through 21, is an apprenticeship company sponsored by the bicoastal Joffrey Ballet. Members of the young troupe, which was formed in 1969, frequently move up into the main company.

The Joffrey Ballet is scheduled for seven performances at the Costa Mesa arts facility Sept. 22-27.

The Joffrey II appearances are part of the Times’ “Stage One” arts program for children, which offered similar educational programs by the New York City Ballet and the New York City Opera when those companies appeared at the Center in October, 1986, and January, 1987, respectively. The Times has asked superintendents to select students this year who did not participate in the previous events.