Celebrated as a charismatic performer and an exceptional partner, James Ady danced with American Ballet Theatre and as a principal with Pennsylvania Ballet. He retired from the stage at age 29 because of a foot injury, then earned a degree in journalism from Boise State University. Ady returned to the dance field to work as […]
Wes Chapman’s role as the chair of the Department of Dance at the Alabama School of Fine Arts (ASFA) is a full-circle moment. He is an alum of the esteemed institution himself. After performing with Alabama Ballet for one season, Chapman was invited by Mikhail Baryshnikov to join American Ballet Theatre’s corps de ballet in […]
Ethan Brown’s dance lineage is unique, but it’s his commitment to his students at Maryland Youth Ballet that really sets his career apart. Both of his parents (Kelly Brown and Isabel Mirrow Brown) were American Ballet Theatre dancers in the 1940s and ’50s. In fact, you’ve likely heard of them before—the cult-classic film The Turning […]
Even in a video interview, Yan Chen’s energy and enthusiasm are unmistakable. “I like to Zoom because I get a little more personal,” explained the American Ballet Theatre Studio Company rehearsal director, who is also and principal teacher for the ABT Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School’s Pre-Professional Division. “So next time I see you, I know […]
How many of us have hovered breathlessly over our iPads, watching grainy YouTube footage of Gelsey Kirkland and Mikhail Baryshnikov in Theme and Variations? Or Suzanne Farrell in Mozartiana? (Hundreds of thousands of us, to be exact.) Well, get ready: Yesterday, Lincoln Center announced its brand new Dance Week, a series of seven online broadcasts […]
Create a Watch Party! Here are four free offerings from New York City’s most celebrated arts organizations to share with your students and their families. New York City Ballet Excerpt of Christopher Wheeldon’s This Bitter Earth performed by Sara Mearns and Adrian Danchig-Waring. “Words cannot fully capture the beauty or essence of this moving pas […]
Throughout Susan Jaffe’s performance career at American Ballet Theatre, there was something special, even magical, about her dancing. Lauded as “America’s quintessential American ballerina” by The New York Times, Jaffe has continued to shine in her postperformance career, most recently as the dean of dance at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. […]
American Ballet Theatre announced today that, after 24 years, beloved principal dancer Stella Abrera will retire from the stage this coming summer. Her farewell performance will be June 13, 2020, at the Metropolitan Opera House, dancing the title role in Giselle. Giselle holds special significance for her. In 2015, Abrera, then a 37-year-old soloist, made […]
If like us you’re already mourning the end of American Ballet Theatre’s marathon Met season, don’t fear. The company just announced the lineup for its fall season, and there’s a lot to look forward to. Running October 16-27 at Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater, ABT’s fall lineup includes world premieres by choreographers Twyla Tharp […]
Being coached by a treasure like former Kirov prima Irina Kolpakova is an experience most dancers only dream of. But company members at American Ballet Theatre have been the lucky beneficiaries of her wisdom since 1990. Thanks to Instagram, where pros like Gillian Murphy and James Whiteside share snippets of their sessions with Kolpakova, any […]