Wiltern Season Cut by Joffrey : Ballet: The first two weeks are called off in aftermath of L.A. violence, with the condensed schedule threatening the troupe’s recovery from red ink.

Reacting to the violence that followed the acquittal of four police officers in the Rodney King case, the Joffrey Ballet has canceled the first two weeks of its scheduled Los Angeles season, originally May 8 to June 7 at the Wiltern Theatre.

The Joffrey season will now open May 22. This change was prompted, in the words of the company’s announcement, “to assure the safety of the dancers and the audience. Patrons, subscribers and single ticket-holders will be notified about the new condensed performance schedule.” The Wiltern Theatre is at Wilshire and Western, near Koreatown, an area hit hard by arson and looting.

It is uncertain what kind of economic effect the canceled dates will have on the Joffrey, which is covering its own expenses for the season--estimated at $1.7 million for the original run--and is back in debt after a remarkable financial comeback.

The executive committee of the Joffrey Ballet’s board of directors met in emergency session last week to discuss the crisis taking place in Los Angeles. Currently with the company in Chicago, artistic director Gerald Arpino issued the following statement:

“We are forced to face the realities of this tragic situation. Los Angeles remains our home, and we are committed to doing everything in our power to share in the healing process. We believe in Los Angeles--its people and its future--and we dedicate ourselves to being part of the healing and rebuilding of this great city.”

It is not yet determined whether the Joffrey Ballet will present the same number of ballets and different programs that it originally scheduled for the Wiltern season. A company spokesperson explained that the season cannot be extended beyond June 7 because of other bookings in the theater.

The Joffrey was counting on its spring season at the Wiltern to both ease its current money problems and to prove that the company has a loyal audience and a strong base of financial backers in Los Angeles.

In recent years, the Joffrey has experienced financial difficulty so severe as to result in the company’s loss of status as a resident company at the Los Angeles Music Center as of July 1, 1991.

Yet, ironically, as of that date, the Joffrey had reduced its deficit to zero, had a new management team in place and was already in amicable negotiations to present its own “Nutcracker” season at the Music Center despite its loss of financial support from the Music Center.

And, last October, the Joffrey--which has maintained residency in both L.A. and New York since 1983--announced that it had found a new temporary home in Los Angeles for its repertory season: the Wiltern. Company executive director Robert Yesselman and artistic director Arpino held a press conference at the historic Art Deco theater to say that the Joffrey would perform a spring season there.

Even with stable company finances, the plan was ambitious: The company, which had played to two-thirds capacity audiences at the Music Center’s 3,300-seat Dorothy Chandler Pavilion during its May 7-June 2 season in 1991, was planning to stay even longer in its new venue. Moreover, the Joffrey would cover its own expenses for the season and planned to commit still more funds to developing rehearsal and office space in the theater, as well as sharing expenses with the Wiltern for building alterations.

Aside from the just announced cancellation of half its L.A. season, other developments have raised the stakes for the company.

On a personal level, the company is reeling because Yesselman, relatively new at the helm, went on indefinite leave in early April to care for a seriously ill companion--leaving even-newer general manager Linda Shelton in charge. And, while the Joffrey’s “Nutcracker” season in Los Angeles was highly successful, losses on its New York “Nutcracker” performances led the Joffrey to decide not to perform a spring season in New York at all.

In an interview prior to the cancellations, board chairman Michael Tennenbaum said that an individual donor who was expected to contribute $1 million to the Joffrey this year decided not to; other recessionary pressures have led to a debt to various vendors of $400,000 and outstanding loans from board members totaling $800,000, he added.

The Joffrey will also have to do battle for audiences with the Kirov Ballet, which appears at Shrine Auditorium May 26-31. And Tennenbaum acknowledges that ticket sales alone will not cover the company’s costs. “The only way I can see . . . for the Joffrey to continue to have large seasons in L.A. is for the Wiltern to be an absolutely fabulous success,” Tennenbaum said. “That’s why our first season is so crucial.

“We’re back in debt again . . . individuals have to start stepping forward who not only want to buy a ticket but want to make a contribution. It’s very expensive to bring the dancers and the sets out here. I would be very saddened if it were to become non-economic. We really need, and I think deserve, the support of the community.”