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AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE TO PREMIERE THE RITUAL, CHOREOGRAPHED BY GABE STONE SHAYER,
ON LINCOLN CENTER AT HOME AND YOUTUBE, SUNDAY, DECEMBER 13 AT 7:30 P.M.

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE WHIPS UP A DIGITAL COOKBOOK

ABT KITCHEN FEATURES 65 RECIPES FROM THE ABT COMMUNITY WITH ARTWORK BY JAVIER RIVET

These magical highlights of Alexei Ratmansky’s choreography for The Nutcracker, filmed in early November at New York City’s Highline Hotel, feature ABT Principal Dancers Isabella Boylston and James Whiteside – who have safely isolated and collaborated together during the pandemic – dancing the pas de deux to the iconic Tchaikovsky score. For the first time, Ratmansky's staging of the female variation will include the original 1892 choreography by Lev Ivanov from notations by Nicholas Sergeyev.

“While we are unable to come together to perform The Nutcracker at Segerstrom Center in Southern California as we do each year, we are delighted to carry on ballet’s beloved holiday tradition with this spectacular film,” said Kevin McKenzie, ABT Artistic Director. “Alexei’s brilliant choreography and ABT’s renowned dancers, combined with the latest digital technology, bring Clara and The Prince to life on screens large and small in a way they’ve never been seen before. I’m so proud to be able to share this holiday gift with our fans around the world.”

“The Nutcracker pas de deux is one of the most beautiful and romantic pieces in classical ballet,” said Isabella Boylston. “I was so happy to have my performance captured on film by LG this holiday season, dancing with my best friend James Whiteside, and to be able to share the magic of The Nutcracker with households around the world.”

“The Nutcracker was my very first taste of ballet,” said James Whiteside. “It’s often an introduction to the electric art of ballet for so many the world over. I’m thrilled to be able to immortalize Ratmansky’s singularly exquisite choreography with my best friend, Isabella Boylston, and grateful that LG has captured it so beautifully.”

Produced for ABT by Matador Content and filmed in 8K Ultra HD, this special presentation of The Nutcracker is sponsored by LG SIGNATURE OLED 8K. LG SIGNATURE is the Global Electronics Partner of American Ballet Theatre.

Following its premiere, The Nutcracker will be available for viewing on ABT’s website and distributed free of charge to ABT’s presenters in Abu Dhabi, Costa Mesa, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Washington, D.C., and other cities. Additionally, the film will be available to the following ABT partner organizations: Children’s Museum of Manhattan, Keen NYC, The Fresh Air Fund, Harlem School of the Arts, Lincoln Center’s Passport to the Arts, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital and all NYC Department of Education public school dance teachers.

For more information on American Ballet Theatre, please visit www.abt.org.

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE ANNOUNCES THE CANCELLATION OF 2021 SEASON AT THE METROPOLITAN OPERA HOUSE

DIGITAL AND OUTDOOR PERFORMANCES PLANNED FOR THE FIRST HALF OF 2021

American Ballet Theatre announced today the cancellation of its 2021 Season at the Metropolitan Opera House. The season, originally planned for June and July of 2021, has been cancelled due to health and safety concerns related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions on non-essential gatherings.

“While we cannot safely gather to rehearse this spring and perform live for our beloved audiences at Lincoln Center, we are inspired by the resiliency and optimism of our dancers and staff,” said Kara Medoff Barnett, ABT Executive Director. “We will continue to find novel ways to create through crisis and to share our artistry with the widest possible audience nationwide andworldwide.”

“It is with deep regret that ABT will miss another season at the Metropolitan Opera House,” said Kevin McKenzie, ABT Artistic Director. “Since 1976, the Company has performed regular seasons at the Met, so the loss of two seasons on the iconic Met stage weighs heavily. Our dancers, musicians, staff, and crew look forward to the day when we can return to this magnificent opera house and perform live for our loyal fans.”

In the months ahead, American Ballet Theatre plans robust offerings of new choreography, created in remote ballet bubbles under strict medical and health guidelines in upstate New York and Southern California, and additional locations to be announced. Digital productions and outdoor socially distanced performances around the United States are planned for spring 2021. Outdoor performances in and around New York City are in the works for summer 2021.

Choreographers premiering new works with ABT in 2021 include New York City Ballet principal dancer Lauren Lovette, Darrell Grand Moultrie, ABT Artist in Residence Alexei Ratmansky, and Sonya Tayeh.

“The unprecedented challenges of the pandemic have been catalytic fuel for transformation,” said McKenzie. “This has been a time of exploring new ways of working and collaborating as we extend the repertoire, and as we find new storytelling partners and platforms to bring the artistry of ABT to the world.”

Additional creative activity planned for 2021 includes ABT Incubator, in its first year under the Artistic Directorship of ABT dancer Jose Sebastian, and new commissions for ABT Studio Company.

For more information on American Ballet Theatre, please visit www.abt.org.

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE PARTNERS WITH CHANEL TO LAUNCH PAS DE DEUX, A DOCU-SERIES CREATED BY
ABT SOLOIST GABE STONE SHAYER, CELEBRATING CREATIVE COLLABORATION ACROSS DISCIPLINES

ALICIA KEYS, MARCUS SAMUELSSON, KAT SULLIVAN, AND CHLOE WISE JOIN ABT DANCERS IN EPISODIC CONVERSATIONS ON DANCE AND ART

PAS DE DEUX TO PREMIERE THURSDAY, OCTOBER 29 AT 7:00PM EDT ON YOUTUBE AND IGTV

As a longstanding patron of dance, fashion icon Gabrielle Chanel was a symbol of innovation, having catalyzed artistic connections across disciplines throughout her career – a distinctly modern approach that was embraced by Karl Lagerfeld and carried on today by Virginie Viard. In a new collaboration, American Ballet Theatre partners with CHANEL to launch Pas de Deux, a limited documentary series exploring the intersection of dance and other diverse art forms. Premiering Thursday, October 29, 2020 at 7:00PM EDT on American Ballet Theatre’s YouTube channel and IGTV, ABT dancers and pioneering creators in art, music, food, and film come together to discuss their unique approaches and their shared inspirations.

Produced by Oscar®-winning Little Monster Films, each Pas de Deux episode sets the stage for two artists to delve into each other’s process and craft in intimate 15-minute conversations that culminate in new artistic creations. Created by ABT Soloist Gabe Stone Shayer, Pas de Deux takes viewers into the homes and workspaces of each dancer and collaborator, allowing these diverse creators the opportunity to connect virtually for an exchange of ideas.

“Pas de Deux is inspired by one of those nights in New York City where you meet interesting people who inspire you,” said Shayer. “The idea first hit me when thinking about how I could continue to create in quarantine. I wanted to highlight the innovation that is magnified by an artist feeling stifled.
I’m obsessed with multimedia collaborations and felt this was the moment where we could explore the intersection of art and artists.”

Creative pairings include:

• ABT Principal Dancer Isabella Boylston with master chef and restaurateur Marcus Samuelsson

• ABT Principal Dancer Cassandra Trenary with Kat Sullivan, Artist in Residence at RLAB, New

  York City’s virtual and augmented reality lab

• ABT Soloist Luciana Paris with visual artist Chloe Wise

• Pas de Deux creator and ABT Soloist Shayer with Grammy Award®-winning singer, songwriter

  and actor Alicia Keys. Additional dance footage for this episode was directed and filmed by

  Pierce Jackson.
  View 30-second trailer for Pas De Deux HERE.

  Artists appearing in Pas de Deux include:

  Marcus Samuelsson is the acclaimed chef behind many restaurants worldwide. He has won multiple James Beard Foundation awards for his work as a chef and as host of No Passport Required, his public television series with Vox/Eater. Samuelsson was crowned champion of Top Chef Masters and Chopped All Stars, and was the guest chef for President Obama’s first state dinner. A committed philanthropist, Samuelsson is co-chair of Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP), which focuses on underserved youth. Author of several cookbooks, in addition to the New York Times bestselling memoir Yes, Chef, Samuelsson also co-produces the annual Harlem EatUp! festival, which celebrates the food, art, and culture of Harlem. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Samuelsson converted his restaurants Red Rooster Harlem, Marcus B&P in Newark, and Red Rooster Overtown in Miami into community kitchens in partnership with World Central Kitchen, serving well over 200,000 meals to those in need. His podcast titled This Moment with Swedish rapper Timbuktu is out now. His newest cookbook, The Rise, was released this fall.

  Kat Sullivan is a Brooklyn based artist, technologist, and educator. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Dance at Skidmore College, and worked as a software engineer and a freelance dancer in the Boston area. While earning her master’s degree at NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP), she developed a practice around creative coding, live performance, machine learning, motion capture, and other emerging technologies. Sullivan has presented works at Lincoln Center, National Sawdust, SXSW, and the Liberty Science Center, and was selected for residencies by Yale, Pioneer Works, RLab, and Ponderosa Dance. She has lectured at Brown University, Complutense University of Madrid, and The Center for Ballet and the Arts, and is currently an adjunct professor at NYU Tandon School of Engineering and Tisch School of the Arts.

   

Artist Chloe Wise was born in Montreal, Quebec. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in studio art and art history from Concordia University in 2013. Her work spans diverse media, including painting, sculpture, video, and installation. Wise is now based in New York, where she creates paintings and objects rooted in societal critique and self-deprecating humor. Her work has been featured in 10 solo gallery exhibitions, including shows in Geneva, Paris, London, and New York.

Alicia Keys is a modern-day Renaissance woman—a 15-time Grammy Award®-winning artist/songwriter/musician/producer, an accomplished actress, a New York Times best-selling author, a film/television and Broadway producer, an entrepreneur, and a powerful force in the world of activism. Since the release of her monumental 2001 debut album, Songs in A Minor, Keys has sold over 65 million records and built an unparalleled repertoire of hits and accomplishments. Keys’ seventh studio album ALICIA was released in September 2020 to critical acclaim, topping Billboard’s Top R&B Albums Chart. The first single, “Show Me Love,” earned Keys a record-extending 11th number 1 on the Billboard Adult R&B Songs airplay chart, and her follow-up hit single, “Underdog,” went number 1 on the overall iTunes chart and became the most added song at Top 40 radio in the U.S. upon its release. Keys released her new book, More Myself: A Journey, on March 31, 2020 via Flatiron Books, which debuted and spent multiple weeks on the New York Times Bestseller List.

Born in Sun Valley, Idaho, Isabella Boylston began dancing at the age of three. While training at the Academy of Colorado Ballet, she won the gold medal in 2001 at the Youth America Grand Prix Finals in New York City. In 2002, she began training at the Harid Conservatory in Boca Raton, Florida, on a full scholarship. She joined ABT Studio Company in 2005, the main Company as an apprentice in May 2006, and the corps de ballet in March 2007. She was promoted to Soloist in June 2011 and to Principal Dancer in August 2014. She won the 2009 Princess Grace Award and was nominated for the 2010 Prix Benois de la Danse. She received the Clive Barnes Award in 2011 and the Annenberg Fellowship in 2014. She has appeared as a guest artist with the Mariinsky Ballet in St. Petersburg and the Royal Danish Ballet.

Cassandra Trenary, a native of Georgia, began her dance training at Lawrenceville School of Ballet. She joined the school's company, Southern Ballet Theatre, in 2006 under the direction of Phyllis Allen and went on to receive additional training at Southeast Regional Ballet Association conventions and Brookwood High School’s Dance department. Trenary trained at American Ballet Theatre's Summer Intensive programs as a National Training Scholar and went on to join the ABT Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School in 2009. She performed with ABT II (now ABT Studio Company) in 2011, joined the main Company as an apprentice in April of that year, and the corps de ballet in November. She was promoted to Soloist in August 2015 and appointed a Principal Dancer in September 2020. She was named a 2011 National YoungArts Foundation Winner and became a 2011 U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts nominee. She is the recipient of a 2015 Princess Grace Dance Honorarium and the 2017 Annenberg Fellowship for Dance.

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Luciana Paris began her ballet training at the age of seven with Elena Perez. From 1991–1996 she studied at the Colon Theater Superior de Art Institute. She won a Gold Medal at the Latin American Dance Competition in 1995. In 1996, Paris was invited to join Ballet Camara and tour with the company in Argentina. She then joined the Teatro Colon Ballet as a soloist. In December 1996, she joined Julio Bocca’s Ballet Argentino as a principal dancer and became Bocca’s dance partner, touring nationally and internationally. She joined American Ballet Theatre as a member of the corps de ballet in October 2001 and was appointed a Soloist in August 2015. In 2008, she performed Twyla Tharp’s Sinatra Suite at the Kennedy Center Honors. In 2012, American Ballet Theatre designated Paris as a Certified Teacher.

Gabe Stone Shayer is a talented Soloist with American Ballet Theatre (ABT), known for his creative ability and desire to break barriers in the world of art and beyond. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Shayer fell in love with dance at the age of three. At age 11, he began his formal training with Alexei Boitsov and Natalia Cherov and at age 14, Shayer began training at The Rock School for Dance. Shayer has received numerous awards and placed in several competitions, including the Grand Prix Award at the 2010 Youth America Grand Prix, finalist at the New York International Competition and the Clive Barnes Award for Dance in 2016. In 2009, he traveled to Moscow to attend the Bolshoi Ballet Academy Program where he won First Place for Best Male Dancer. He continued his studies at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow under the tutelage of Ilya Kuznetsov. In 2011 he became the first African American male to graduate from the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in its nearly 250-year history. He joined ABT Studio Company in September 2011, the main Company as an apprentice in April 2012, and the corps de ballet in November 2012. Shayer was appointed Soloist with ABT in September 2020. As founder of Creative Genesis and the creative director of Pas de Deux, he continues to break creative boundaries on and off the stage.

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Pierce Jackson was born in New York City. He has been directing films based on, and inspired by, dance for the last seven years. He has collaborated with brands and institutions including Kenneth Cole, LVMH, MoMA, The Whitney Museum, The Shed, and PERFORMA as well as publications such as Vogue, Interview Magazine, Paper Magazine, The New York Times, Visionaire, and Pin-Up Magazine to develop stories in fashion, culture, and the arts. Since 2014, along with his wife Dianna Mesion, Jackson has worked with the esteemed Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow to create promotional material and content for their live performance-to-cinema series campaigns.

Little Monster Films is the production company of Oscar®-winning filmmakers Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin (FREE SOLO, MERU), who have made some of the most critically and commercially successful documentaries of the last decade. Little Monster strives to tell stories that are meditations on curiosity, ingenuity, creativity, perseverance, and ultimately the human spirit.

NEW YORK CITY BALLET WILL NOT PERFORM AT THE DAVID H. KOCH THEATER DURING THE WINTER AND SPRING OF 2021

NYCB PLANS TO RESUME PERFORMANCES AT ITS HOME THEATER IN SEPTEMBER 2021 WITH THE LAUNCH OF THE 2021-22 SEASON

Performances During the Winter and Spring of 2021 Will Not Take Place Due to Ongoing Safety Concerns Related to the COVID-19 Pandemic

The 2021-22 Season Will Open at the David H. Koch Theater on September 21, 2021

The 21-Week Season Will be Highlighted by Six World Premiere Ballets by Choreographers

Sidra Bell, Silas Farley, Andrea Miller, Justin Peck, Jamar Roberts, and Pam Tanowitz

NYCB Principal Dancers Maria Kowroski, Gonzalo Garcia, and Ask la Cour to Give Their Farewell Performances with NYCB During the 2021-22 Season

Chun Wai Chan, Formerly a Principal Dancer with Houston Ballet, Will Join NYCB as a Soloist Next Year

2021 Fall Season to Feature Annual Fashion Gala With World Premiere Ballets by Sidra Bell and Andrea Miller

2022 Winter Season to Feature World Premiere Ballets by Choreographers Justin Peck and Jamar Roberts

2022 Spring Season to Feature a Two-Week Celebration
of the 50th Anniversary of NYCB’s Legendary 1972 Stravinsky Festival Including a World Premiere by Silas Farley

2022 Spring Season to Feature World Premiere by Pam Tanowitz and NYCB Premiere of Tanowitz’s Gustave le Gray No. 1
With Dancers from New York City Ballet and Dance Theatre of Harlem Performing Together at Lincoln Center for the First Time in 20 Years

The Travelers Companies, Inc. is the Global Sponsor of New York City Ballet

-more-

NEW YORK CITY BALLET – 2021-22 Season Announcement – Page 2

New York City Ballet, which has not presented live performances since March due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, today announced that it will be unable to perform at the David H. Koch Theater during the winter and spring of 2021 due to continuing health concerns and mandatory New York State and New York City regulations prohibiting large-scale, live indoor gatherings which are required for both NYCB’s rehearsals and performances. The decision was finalized at a meeting with the Company's board of directors late yesterday.

NYCB plans to return to the stage of the David H. Koch Theater, its home at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts since 1964, for its 2021-22 Season, which is scheduled to begin on Tuesday, September 21, 2021.

The announcement was made by NYCB Executive Director Katherine Brown and Artistic Director Jonathan Stafford. “We are devastated that New York City Ballet will not be able to perform next winter and spring as we previously hoped, but our primary focus during the ongoing health crisis is the safety of our artists, staff, and audiences. In consultation with medical and government officials, it has become increasingly clear that returning to our home at Lincoln Center to present live performances will not be possible during the early months of 2021,” said Brown and Stafford.

“After already cancelling our 2020 spring, fall, and Nutcracker seasons, losing an additional 12 weeks of performances in the winter and spring of next year is heartbreaking for everyone at NYCB. The financial ramifications related to the ongoing pandemic have been staggering with projected losses of more than $45 million in ticket sales alone,” said Brown. “Despite these challenges, it has been very heartening to make plans for a return to our theater in September of 2021.”

“While more than a year off the stage is an eternity for dancers whose careers are already short, the Company has recently begun to take small steps towards a return, with our rehearsal studios reopening last month for dancers to begin conditioning on their own,” said Stafford. “In the coming weeks we hope to move into the next phase of activity and expand studio access to small groups of dancers as we continue to build towards a safe and healthy return for the full company.”

Brown and Stafford added that if circumstances change and allow for some kind of live performance activity sooner than next September at an appropriate venue that is safe for artists and audiences alike, NYCB will be open to exploring those opportunities.

“In the meantime, the Company plans to maintain an online presence through performance streams, interactive virtual classes and educational workshops, and other original content,” Brown and Stafford added. Plans for additional digital offerings will be made in the coming months.

2021-22 SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

The 2021-22 Season will also mark NYCB’s first season fully planned by the Company’s new artistic leadership team, with programming curated by Associate Artistic Director Wendy Whelan working in collaboration with Artistic Director Jonathan Stafford and Resident Choreographer and Artistic Advisor Justin Peck.

In announcing the programming for the 2021-22 Season, Whelan said, “While the ongoing shutdown continues to be challenging for everyone, it has been very gratifying to look to the future and make plans to launch this first full season that Jon, Justin and I have programmed. It is certain to be a very exciting and moving year of performances by our amazing company of artists.”

Six World Premiere Ballets

Highlights of the 2021-22 season will include six world premiere ballets, including new works by Sidra Bell and Andrea Miller during the 2021 Fall Season, new works by Justin Peck and Jamar Roberts during the 2022 Winter Season, and new works by Silas Farley and Pam Tanowitz during the 2022 Spring Season.

“We are honored to present the most diverse group of choreographers who have ever been commissioned by NYCB during a single season,” said Whelan. “I know that these artists will inspire and energize everyone here as we continue our unparalleled commitment to expanding the ballet repertory, as well as continuing our work to make the Company a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive institution.”

September 21, 2021 – Opening Night Performance

New York City Ballet’s 2021-22 Season at Lincoln Center will open on Tuesday, September 21, with a special celebration of the Company’s return to the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center. “This opening night performance at our home theater after more than a year away from its stage will be an unforgettable evening for both the Company and our audiences,” said Whelan. Programming for this one- time-only performance will be announced at a later date.

Fall Fashion Gala – Thursday, September 30 – Bell and Miller World Premieres

The Company’s annual Fall Fashion Gala will take place on Thursday, September 30 featuring the World Premiere ballets by Sidra Bell and Andrea Miller, both of whom are making their first-ever works for the stage at NYCB. The fashion designers who will collaborate with Bell and Miller will be announced at a later date.

Winter Season World Premieres by Justin Peck and Jamar Roberts

For the 2022 Winter Season, NYCB Resident Choreographer and Artistic Advisor Justin Peck will create a new work that will premiere on Thursday, January 27 as part of the Company’s annual New Combinations Evening, on a program that will also include Merce Cunningham’s Summerspace.

The Winter Season will also include a new ballet by Jamar Roberts set to music by Kyle Preston, which was originally announced for the 2020 Spring Season, and will now premiere on Thursday, February 3. In 2019 Roberts was named the Resident Choreographer of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, where he joined as a dancer in 2002.

World Premiere by Silas Farley for the 50th Anniversary of NYCB’s 1972 Stravinsky Festival

Highlighting the 2022 Spring Season will be a two-week celebration of the 50th Anniversary of NYCB’s legendary 1972 Stravinsky Festival, from Tuesday, May 3 through Sunday, May 15. The celebration will feature ballets to Stravinsky’s music by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, and Justin Peck, as well as two orchestral works performed by the 62-piece New York City Ballet Orchestra which is led by NYCB Music Director Andrew Litton.

The anniversary celebration will also include a World Premiere ballet created in tribute to Stravinsky and Balanchine’s landmark works by former NYCB dancer Silas Farley, who recently retired from dancing to pursue other educational and artistic opportunities. The score for the new ballet will be created by composer and writer David K. Israel and based on a 1946 musical exchange between Balanchine and Stravinsky, in which Balanchine wrote an acrostic poem in Russian as a gift for Stravinsky’s 65th birthday and set it to a simple melody. Stravinsky then harmonized the melody as a gesture of gratitude for Balanchine.

The new Farley ballet will premiere on Thursday, May 5 as part of the Company’s annual Spring Gala performance.

Spring Season Premieres by Pam Tanowitz and Collaboration with Dance Theatre of Harlem

The 2022 Spring Season will also feature the World Premiere of a new work by choreographer Pam Tanowitz set to composer Ted Hearne’s Law of Mosaics for string ensemble, which was originally scheduled to premiere during the 2020 Spring Season, and will now premiere on Friday, April 22.

The same performance will also include the NYCB Premiere of Pam Tanowitz’s Gustave Le Gray No. 1, a quartet that was originally created in 2019 for “Ballet Across America” at the Kennedy Center and featured dancers from Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) and Miami City Ballet. For the NYCB premiere of Gustave Le Gray No. 1, which is set to music by Caroline Shaw performed by an on-stage pianist, the work will be performed by two dancers from NYCB and two guest dancers from DTH, marking the first time in 20 years that the two companies have performed together at Lincoln Center.

Ask la Cour, Maria Kowroski, Gonzalo Garcia – Farewell Performances

The 2021-22 Season will also feature Farewell Performances for three of the Company’s long-time Principal Dancers – Ask la Cour on Saturday, October 9, 2021; Maria Kowroski, on Sunday, October 17, 2021; and Gonzalo Garcia on Sunday, February 27, 2022. “It is always bittersweet for both the Company and our audiences to say goodbye to beloved dancers, but we look forward to celebrating Maria, Ask, and Gonzalo’s incredible careers at these three special performances,” said Stafford.

Chun Wai Chan Joins NYCB As Soloist

Chun Wai Chan, formerly a Principal Dancer with the Houston Ballet, will join NYCB as a Soloist next year. “We are very happy to announce that Chun Wai Chan will join New York City Ballet as a Soloist,” said Stafford and Whelan. “We first talked to him in January about becoming a member of NYCB for the start of the 2020 Fall Season, but had to postpone those plans when that season was cancelled. Chun Wai will be a wonderful addition to our roster of dancers and we look forward to working with him when we return to rehearsals for the 2021-22 season.”

Born in Guangdong, China, Chan trained at the Guangzhou Art School from 2004 to 2010. In 2010 Chan was a finalist at the Prix de Lausanne ballet competition which earned him a full scholarship to study with Houston Ballet’s second company, Houston Ballet II. In 2012 Chan joined Houston Ballet as a member of the corps de ballet and he was promoted to Principal in 2017.

His repertory with Houston Ballet included leading roles in ballets by Stanton Welch, Ben Stevenson, George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, John Cranko, William Forsythe, Jiří Kylián, Edwaard Liang, Wayne McGregor, Trey McIntyre, and Justin Peck, among others.

Chan was also featured in Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch” in 2016 and Pointe Magazine’s “Standouts of 2017.” He has also appeared at the Nijinsky Gala XLI in Hamburg, Germany (2015), New York City Center’s Fall for Dance Festival (2015), and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival (2018). Chan was also a Guest Principal with Hong Kong Ballet in 2018 and 2019.

ADDITIONAL 2021-22 SEASON PROGRAMMING

Complete programming details for the 2021-22 Season will be announced at a later date, in addition to the new works, repertory highlights will include:

2021 Fall Season – Tuesday, September 21 through Sunday, October 17

• George Balanchine’s Serenade, Agon, Symphony in C, Chaconne, Western Symphony, and

  Slaughter on Tenth Avenue

• Jerome Robbins’ Glass Pieces and Opus 19/The Dreamer

• Alexei Ratmansky’s Namouna, A Grand Divertissement

• Christopher Wheeldon’s Mercurial Manoeuvres and After the Rain (pas de deux)

• Justin Peck’s Rotunda

  George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker® -- Friday, November 26 through Sunday, January 2

  2022 Winter Season -- Tuesday, January 18 through Sunday, February 27

• George Balanchine’s Diamonds, The Four Temperaments, Mozartiana, La Valse, Pavane, and

  Prodigal Son, Walpurgisnacht Ballet, and The Unanswered Question from Ivesiana

• Jerome Robbins’ Moves and Andantino

• Pam Tanowitz’s Bartók Ballet

• Peter Martins’ Swan Lake

• Christopher Wheeldon’s DGV: Danse à Grande Vitesse

  2022 Spring Season -- Tuesday, April 19 through Sunday, May 29

  • George Balanchine’s Agon, Apollo, Orpheus, Firebird, Symphony in Three Movements, Rubies,

    Duo Concertant, Divertimento from ‘Le Baiser de la Fée,’ Le Tombeau de Couperin,

    Stravinsky Violin Concerto, Divertimento No 15, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream

  • Jerome Robbins’ The Cage, Circus Polka, Afternoon of a Faun, and Piano Pieces

  • Justin Peck’s Pulcinella Variations and Scherzo Fantastique

TICKET SALES

Subscription packages for the 2021-22 season will go on sale in mid-November. Single tickets for George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker® and repertory performances for the 2021-22 Season will go on sale next year, date to be announced. Subscription packages and single tickets will be available online at nycballet.com or by phone at 212-496-0600. All performances will take place at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center, which is located at West 63rd Street and Columbus Avenue. Programming is subject to change.

FAREWELL PERFORMANCES

ASK LA COUR – Saturday, October 9 at 8pm

Ask la Cour, who joined NYCB in 2002, will give his farewell performance with the Company on Saturday, October 9 at 8pm dancing Balanchine’s Monumentum pro Gesualdo and Movements for Piano and Orchestra, and Christopher Wheeldon’s After the Rain (pas de deux).

Born in Copenhagen, Denmark, la Cour began his dance training at the age of nine at the Royal Danish Ballet School. He joined the Royal Danish Ballet as a member of the corps de ballet in 2000, where he performed featured roles in ballets by August Bournonville, John Cranko, Peter Martins, John Neumeier, Alexei Ratmansky, and Lila York. In the fall of 2002 la Cour joined New York City Ballet as a member of the corps de ballet. He was promoted to the rank of Soloist in the spring of 2005 and was named a Principal Dancer in the winter of 2013.

Since joining NYCB, la Cour has danced an extensive repertory of ballets by NYCB’s co-founding choreographers George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins, and has also performed leading roles in works by Robert Binet, August Bournonville, Boris Eifman, Jorma Elo, Lauren Lovette, Peter Martins, Benjamin Millepied, Justin Peck, Alexei Ratmansky, Susan Stroman, Richard Tanner, and Christopher Wheeldon.

In January 2020, la Cour was named the artistic director of the Frank Ohman School of Ballet and New York Dance Theatre, which is based in Commack, New York and was founded in 1979 by former NYCB soloist Frank Ohman who passed away in 2019.

MARIA KOWROSKI – Sunday, October 17, 2021 at 3pm

Maria Kowroski, who has danced with New York City Ballet for more than 25 years, will give her farewell performance with the Company on Sunday, October 17, 2021 at 3pm. The program for the performance will be announced at a later date.

Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Kowroski began her ballet training at age seven with the School of Grand Rapids Ballet. She entered the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of NYCB, in the fall of 1992. Kowroski became an apprentice with NYCB in the summer of 1994 and was invited to join the Company as a member of the corps de ballet in January of 1995. In the spring of 1997, she was promoted to the rank of Soloist and in the spring of 1999, Kowroski was promoted to Principal Dancer.

During her extraordinary career with NYCB, Kowroski has performed leading roles in a vast range of works by NYCB’s co-founding choreographers George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins, and is the only current dancer with NYCB to have worked directly with Robbins.

Kowroski has also originated featured roles in works by numerous choreographers including Mauro Bigonzetti, Boris Eifman, Jorma Elo, Eliot Feld, Douglas Lee, Edwaard Liang, Peter Martins, Wayne McGregor, Benjamin Millepied, Matthew Neenan, Justin Peck, Susan Stroman, Helgi Tomasson, and Christopher Wheeldon, among others.

Kowroski has performed as a guest artist with the Mariinsky Ballet in productions of Swan Lake, Jewels, Prodigal Son, and most recently Serenade and In the Night. She has performed in international galas and guested with several ballet companies around the world. She appeared in the production of Carmen at The Metropolitan Opera. She was also a recipient of the Princess Grace Award in 1994 and the statuette award in 2006.

GONZALO GARCIA – Sunday, February 27, 2022 at 3pm

Gonzalo Garcia, who joined NYCB as a Principal Dancer in 2007, will give his farewell performance with the Company on Sunday, February 27, 2022 at 3pm. The program for the performance will be announced at a later date.

Born in Zaragoza, Spain, Garcia began studying ballet at the age of eight at Maria Avila’s school. In 1995, he attended the summer session at San Francisco Ballet School and participated in the Prix de Lausanne, becoming the youngest dancer to receive a gold medal. He then returned to the San Francisco Ballet School to resume his studies and joined San Francisco Ballet as a member of the corps de ballet in March 1998. He was promoted to Soloist in 2000, and became a Principal Dancer in 2002. His repertory with SFB included leading roles in works by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, William Forsythe, Mark Morris, Yuri Possokhov, Helgi Tomasson, and Christopher Wheeldon.

Garcia made his first appearance with NYCB as a guest artist in 2004 when he was invited to perform Balanchine’s Ballo della Regina as part of the Company’s Balanchine Centennial Celebration.

Since joining NYCB in the fall of 2007, Garcia has performed numerous featured roles in ballets by Balanchine, Robbins, and many other choreographers, including August Bournonville, Benjamin Millepied, and Twyla Tharp. Garcia has also created featured roles in five ballets by NYCB Resident Choreographer Justin Peck, as well as works by Mauro Bigonzetti, Peter Martins, Wayne McGregor, Alexei Ratmansky, and Christopher Wheeldon, among others. In 2018 Garcia was named to the permanent faculty of the School of American Ballet.

CHOREOGRAPHERS FOR WORLD PREMIERE BALLETS
SIDRA BELL – World Premiere – September 30, 2021 (Fall Fashion Gala)

Sidra Bell is the founder of Sidra Bell Dance New York and a choreographer and educator who is currently a Master Lecturer at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, an Adjunct Professor at Marymount Manhattan College, a Lecturer at SUNY Purchase, and an Adjunct Professor at Ball State University in Indiana. She has been an artist in residence at Harvard University, and an Adjunct Professor at Georgian Court University and Barnard College. Bell received a BA in History from Yale University and an MFA in Choreography from Purchase College Conservatory of Dance. She is the founder and creative director of the award-winning MODULE Laboratory, a New York City-based immersive platform for movement and theater artists.

Bell has won several awards, notably a First Prize for Choreography at the Solo Tanz Theater Festival in Stuttgart, Germany and a National Dance Project Production Award from the New England Foundation for the Arts. Her work has been seen throughout the United States and in Denmark, France, Austria, Bulgaria, Turkey, Slovenia, Sweden, Germany, China, Canada, Aruba, Korea, Brazil, and Greece.

Bell has created over 100 works notably for BODYTRAFFIC, Ailey II, The Juilliard School, Whim W'Him, Boston Conservatory at Berklee College, River North Dance Chicago, NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Sacramento Ballet, Ballet Austin, Springboard Danse Montréal, and Alonzo King's LINES Ballet School, among others.

ANDREA MILLER – World Premiere – September 30, 2021 (Fall Fashion Gala)

Andrea Miller is the Artistic Director, Choreographer, and Founder of Brooklyn-based company GALLIM. She creates movement-based works for stage, film, museums, and gallery spaces, and is currently working on a series of dance films and site-specific works.

Her highly acclaimed dances are performed by GALLIM as well as other leading dance companies around the world. Recent commissions include New York City Ballet, Works & Process at the Guggenheim, Martha Graham Dance Company, A.I.M., Ballet Hispánico, Ailey II, Rambert 2, and The Juilliard School, as well as Netherlands Dance Theater 2, Bern Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, Pennsylvania Ballet, Grace Farms, and Noord Nederlands Dans.

From 2017–2018, Miller became the first choreographer to hold the distinction of being named Artist-in-Residence at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She has been recognized with fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, Sadler’s Wells, New York City Center, and the Princess Grace Foundation. In October 2018, she was featured in Forbes as a female entrepreneur and leader in the dance world.

Film credits include The Death and Life of John F. Donovan (2018), directed by Xavier Dolan; In This Life (2018) starring former NYCB Principal Dancer Robbie Fairchild; Sara (2020) starring NYCB Principal Dancer Sara Mearns and directed by Ariel Schulman and Henry Joost; Notes on Gathering (2020) directed by Miller and Ben Stamper; Orilla (2002) directed by Miller and Ben Stamper; and Shaping Absence (2020) directed by Miller and Ben Stamper.

Currently an adjunct professor at Marymount Manhattan College, Miller has also served as an adjunct professor at Barnard College, and has been invited to teach across the U.S., recently at Harvard University, The Juilliard School, New York University, Wesleyan University, and the University of California, Santa Barbara, among others.

JUSTIN PECK – World Premiere – January 27, 2022

Justin Peck is the Resident Choreographer and Artistic Advisor of New York City Ballet. He has worked with a range of artistic collaborators including composers Dan Deacon, Bryce Dessner, Philip Glass, Steve Reich, and Sufjan Stevens; visual artists John Baldessari, Jules de Balincourt, Marcel Dzama, Shepard Fairey, Karl Jensen, Stephen Powers, and Sterling Ruby; and fashion designers Tsumori Chisato, Prabal Gurung, Mary Katrantzou, Humberto Leon, and Dries Van Noten.

He has created more than 40 works for a range of institutions including New York City Ballet, the Paris Opéra Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Miami City Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Houston Ballet, and L.A. Dance Project, and his works have also been performed by Dutch National Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, and Pennsylvania Ballet, among other companies. A native of San Diego, California and a dancer with New York City Ballet from 2007 to 2019, Peck participated in the New York Choreographic Institute, an affiliate of NYCB, in 2009, and received NYCI’s first year-long choreographic residency in 2011. Peck was named NYCB’s Resident Choreographer, the second in the Company’s history, in July 2014.

Peck was the subject of the 2014 documentary Ballet 422, which followed him for two months as he created NYCB’s 422nd original ballet, Paz de la Jolla. In 2015, his ballet Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes won the Bessie Award for Outstanding Production. Peck was the Tony Award–winning choreographer of the 2018 Broadway revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel, and he is the choreographer of the upcoming film adaptation of West Side Story, directed by Academy Award-winning director Steven Spielberg.

JAMAR ROBERTS – World Premiere – February 3, 2022

Jamar Roberts is the Resident Choreographer of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (AAADT). A dancer with the company since 2002, Roberts’ first full-length work for the company, Members Don’t Get Weary, premiered at New York City Center in December of 2016 to critical acclaim. In December of 2019 he premiered his next work entitled Ode. Roberts has set his work entitled Gemeos on Ailey II.

Roberts is a graduate of the New World School of the Arts and The Ailey School and has danced for AAADT, Ailey II, and Complexions Contemporary Ballet. He won the 2016 Bessie Award for Outstanding Performer and has performed as a guest artist with The Royal Ballet in London and made multiple television performance appearances.

He has been commissioned by the Juilliard School Dance Division for both live and virtual works, the March on Washington Film Festival to create a dance on film tribute to the honorable John Lewis, New York City Center’s Fall For Dance Festival, and as a Works and Process Virtual Commissioned artist, where he created the acclaimed short work on film entitled Cooped.

PAM TANOWITZ – World Premiere – April 22, 2022

Pam Tanowitz, New York-based choreographer and founder of Pam Tanowitz Dance, is known for her unflinchingly post-modern treatment of the classical dance vocabulary.

Tanowitz was recently named the first-ever Choreographer in Residence at the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. In 2019, she received the Herb Alpert Award in Dance. Other awards include Baryshnikov Arts Center’s Cage Cunningham Fellowship (2017), City Center Choreography Fellowship (2016), Center for Ballet and the Arts at New York University Fellowship (2016), Hodder Fellowship from Princeton University (2013), Guggenheim Fellowship (2011), and a Foundation for Contemporary Arts, Grants to Artist Award (2010). She received Bessie Awards in 2009 & 2016.

In addition to Bartók Ballet (2019) created for NYCB, Tanowitz’s recent works include commissions from American Ballet Theatre, The Royal Ballet, Paul Taylor American Modern Dance, the Kennedy Center’s “Ballet Across America,” Martha Graham Dance Company, The Joyce Theater,
Bard Summerscape Festival, Vail International Dance Festival, and New York Live Arts, among numerous others. She has also created or set work for City Center’s Fall for Dance Festival, The Juilliard School, Ballet Austin, New York Theater Ballet, and Saint Louis Ballet; and has been a guest choreographer at Barnard College and Princeton University.

Originally from New Rochelle, New York, Tanowitz holds degrees from The Ohio State University and Sarah Lawrence College, and is currently a visiting guest artist at Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University.

SILAS FARLEY – World Premiere – May 5, 2022 (Spring Gala)

Silas Farley is a choreographer and an Armstrong Visiting Artist-in-Residence in Ballet at Southern Methodist University’s Meadows School of the Arts. Originally from Charlotte, North Carolina, Farley danced with New York City Ballet from 2012-2020, and has been a choreographer since age 11.

Farley has created ballets for MetLiveArts at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Works & Process at the Guggenheim Museum’s Virtual Commissions initiative, the School of American Ballet (SAB), the New York Choreographic Institute, the Columbia Ballet Collaborative, and the Practicing Silence workshop at Grace Farms Foundation. He has been commissioned by The Washington Ballet to create a work scheduled to premiere in June 2021.

Farley is a guest teacher at SAB and has also guest taught internationally. He served as the 2018- 19 Artist in Residence for Ballet Hartford and was an inaugural Jerome Robbins Dance Division Fellow at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, where his research earned him Lincoln Center’s 2015 Martin E. Segal Award. He has lectured on ballet extensively and is the host of the “Hear the Dance” episodes of NYCB’s City Ballet The Podcast. Since the summer of 2019, Farley has served on the Board of Directors of The George Balanchine Foundation.

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE APPOINTS JOSE SEBASTIAN AS NEW DIRECTOR OF ABT INCUBATOR

SEBASTIAN TO SUCCEED DAVID HALLBERG IN “ABT INCUBATOR: PASS THE BATON” PROGRAM, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 14 AT 6:00 P.M.
ON YOUTUBE AND IGTV

American Ballet Theatre has appointed ABT dancer Jose Sebastian as the new director of ABT Incubator, ABT’s annual choreographic workshop. Sebastian succeeds ABT Principal Dancer David Hallberg, who has led ABT Incubator since its inception in 2010. An online presentation marking this leadership transition, as Hallberg steps into his new role as Artistic Director of The Australian Ballet and as Sebastian steps up to carry forward ABT’s commitment to choreographic innovation, will take place on Wednesday, October 14 at 6:00pm. This digital event will feature a discussion of ABT Incubator’s past, present, and future with Hallberg and Sebastian, moderated by ABT Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.

“ABT Incubator: Pass the Baton,” streamed for free on ABT’s YouTube channel and @ABTOfficial IGTV, will also feature film footage and images from the Company’s previous two ABT Incubator workshops, as well as a performance excerpt of a new work recently created by ABT Incubator alumna Gabrielle Lamb for ABT dancer Zimmi Coker. “ABT Incubator: Pass the Baton” is produced for ABT by Dianna Mesion and Pierce Jackson.

Jose Sebastian, a native of New York City, started his dance training at age eight with the School of American Ballet and continued training there for nearly 10 years. He received additional ballet training at Studio Maestro and private training with Fabrice Herrault and Olga Kostritzky. Sebastian joined ABT Studio Company in 2006 and American Ballet Theatre as an apprentice in January 2009 and became a member of the corps de ballet in January 2010. Sebastian is Artistic Director of the Hampton’s Dance Project and created the short film Sillage for Moving Stories: An ABT Film Festival.

Commissions and presentations of new work by women choreographers are supported by the ABT Women's Movement.

Champion support for the ABT Women’s Movement is provided by Jenna Segal. Additional Leadership support provided by the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and through an endowed gift from the Toni and Martin Sosnoff New Works Fund.

ABT's Choreographic Innovation and Inclusion programs are generously supported by the Blavatnik Family Foundation. Additional major support is provided by Carrie Gaiser Casey and Mark Casey, and Denise Littlefield Sobel.

Bank of America – Lead Corporate Partner of ABT Studio Company.
LG Signature, The Global Electronics Partner of American Ballet Theatre. American Airlines is the Official Airline of American Ballet Theatre.

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE PRESENTS

ABTKIDS 2020:
B IS FOR BALLET SATURDAY, OCTOBER 24 AT 11:00AM,

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH RANDOM HOUSE CHILDREN’S BOOKS JENNIFER GARNER TO NARRATE ANNUAL PROGRAM FOR CHILDREN

American Ballet Theatre’s newly released children’s book B Is for Ballet: A Dance Alphabet will leap from its pages to screens across the world with a special digital version of ABTKids, Saturday, October 24 at 11:00am. This 30-minute family-friendly program, streamed for free on ABT’s YouTube Channel, will feature footage from celebrated ABT performances, as well as newly recorded segments featuring ABT dancers. ABTKids 2020: B Is for Ballet is designed to take children on an alphabet journey through the magical world of ballet.

The 2020 ABTKids program, presented in partnership with Random House Children’s Books, will include appearances by ABT dancers Herman Cornejo, Courtney Lavine, Lauren Post, Cory Stearns, and Devon Teuscher, as well as students from the ABT Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School. ABTKids will be narrated by actor, entrepreneur, and early childhood activist Jennifer Garner.

ABTKids will be distributed to ABT partner organizations including Children’s Museum of Manhattan, Keen NYC, The Fresh Air Fund, Harlem School of the Arts, Lincoln Center’s Passport to the Arts, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital, and all New York City Department of Education public school dance teachers, free of charge, along with a suite of ballet-themed activities, games, and educational tools created by ABT’s Education staff and Teaching Artists.

ABTKids is generously underwritten by Bloomberg Philanthropies and produced by Matador Content. Executive Producers for ABTKids include Kara and Dov Barnett, Vicki and Lloyd Goldman, Jennifer and David Millstone, and Nancy Walker. Backers for ABTKids include Aditi Davray and Neil Barve, Robyn and Paul Goldschmid, and Elizabeth and Reynold Levy.

B Is for Ballet, the children’s picture book, written by John Robert Allman and illustrated by Rachael Dean, is published by Doubleday Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books. An Unlikely Story Bookstore & Café of Plainville, MA, the bookstore partner of ABTKids, will co-livestream this virtual event. Fans can purchase B Is for Ballet through the bookstore.

For sponsor packages, unique VIP experiences and special activities for children and families, please contact ABT Special Events at specialevents@abt.org.

B IS FOR BALLET: A DANCE ALPHABET

By John Robert Allman; Illustrated by Rachael Dean
Doubleday Books for Young Readers | On Sale September 22, 2020 | Ages 3–7 Hardcover: 978-0-593-18094-5 | $18.99 | $24.99 Can. | 48 pages Ebook: 978-0-593-18096-9 | $11.99 | $11.99 Can.

Doubleday Books for Young Readers is an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, the world’s largest English-language children’s trade book publisher. Random House Children’s Books is a division of Penguin Random House LLC.

NEW YORK CITY BALLET ANNOUNCES DIGITAL FALL SEASON

Five Weeks of Online Programming
Monday, September 28 through Saturday, October 31 Highlighted by Performance Footage from More Than 25 Acclaimed Ballets

Final Week of Digital Season Will Feature a Festival of New Choreography
With Five Original Works by Choreographers
Sidra Bell, Andrea Miller, Justin Peck, Jamar Roberts, and Pam Tanowitz
One Premiering Each Night from Tuesday, October 27 through Saturday, October 31

Family Programming Will Include
Two Special Saturday Matinees on October 10 and 24 at 2pm
Each Featuring Performance Footage from Ballets by
NYCB’s Co-Founding Choreographers George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins

Additional Programming for the Digital Fall Season to Include: New Episodes of City Ballet The Podcast Every Monday

Ballet Essentials, Interactive Repertory Workshops for Teens and Adults on Mondays at 6:30pm

Signature Steps, NYCB-Focused Ballet Classes
for Intermediate to Advanced Level Dancers on Wednesdays at 6:30pm

Ballet Breaks, Interactive Movement Workshops for Children Ages 3 through 8 on Saturdays at 11am

Access Workshops for Teens and Adults with Disabilities on Thursdays at 6pm and for Children with Disabilities Ages 4 through 12 on Saturdays at Noon

The Travelers Companies, Inc. is the Global Sponsor of New York City Ballet

JOO WON AHN, ARAN BELL, SKYLAR BRANDT, THOMAS FORSTER, CALVIN ROYAL III AND CASSANDRA TRENARY PROMOTED TO PRINCIPAL DANCER AT AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE

GABE STONE SHAYER PROMOTED TO SOLOIST

Joo Won Ahn, Aran Bell, Skylar Brandt, Thomas Forster, Calvin Royal III and Cassandra Trenary have been appointed to the rank of Principal Dancer with American Ballet Theatre. Gabe Stone Shayer has been promoted to the rank of Soloist. The promotions, announced today by ABT Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie, are effective immediately.

Joo Won Ahn is originally from Wonju, Korea and began his formal training in 2006 at Y.J. Ballet People Academy and Sun Hwa Art School. In 2012, he became a student at Korea National University of Arts in Seoul. He won the Silver Medal at the Korean International Ballet Competition and 3rd Prize at the 2012 Varna International Ballet Competition in Bulgaria. Ahn was invited to join ABT Studio Company in 2013 after winning the Gold Medal at Youth America Grand Prix in New York City. He joined American Ballet Theatre as an apprentice in January 2014 and became a member of the corps de ballet in June 2014. He was promoted to Soloist in September 2019. Ahn’s repertoire with ABT includes the title role in Apollo, Solor in La Bayadère, Ali and Lankendem in Le Corsaire, Albrecht in Giselle, the Nutcracker Prince in Alexei Ratmansky’s The Nutcracker, Dionysius in Of Love and Rage, Winter in The Seasons, Bluebird in Ratmansky’s The Sleeping Beauty, Neapolitan Dance in Swan Lake, leading roles in AFTERITE, The Brahms-Haydn Variations, Garden Blue, Serenade after Plato’s Symposium, Theme and Variations and Thirteen Diversions, and featured roles in AfterEffect, Bach Partita and In the Upper Room. He created Murasaki in A Gathering of Ghosts and roles in After You, New American Romance and Songs of Bukovina.

Aran Bell was born in Bethesda, Maryland and began studying ballet at age four. He received his early training at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet and with Denys Ganio in Rome, Italy. He continued his training with Fabrice Herrault and Magaly Suarez and at The Royal Ballet School in London and American Ballet Theatre’s Summer Intensive. Bell’s awards include the Hope Award at the Youth America Grand Prix Finals in New York City in 2009 and 2010 and the Junior Grand Prix (2011), Grand Prix at the Milan International Ballet Competition (2010), the Premio Positano (2011), the Premio Amalfi Young Talent Award (2012), Gold Medal at Tanzolymp Berlin (2012), Gold Medal and Audience Choice Award at Rieti International Ballet Competition (2012), the Premio Roma Jia Ruskaja (2012) and the Premio Capri Danza International Award (2014). Bell was featured in the 2011 film First Position: A Ballet Documentary. He joined ABT Studio Company in September 2014, the main Company as an apprentice in May 2016 and the corps de ballet in March 2017. He was promoted to Soloist with ABT in September 2019. His repertoire includes Lankendem in Le Corsaire, Albrecht in Giselle, St. John Rivers in Jane Eyre, the Nutcracker Prince in Ratmansky’s The Nutcracker, Romeo in Romeo and Juliet, Prince Désiré in Ratmansky’s The Sleeping Beauty, Prince Siegfried and von Rothbart in Swan Lake and featured roles in Garden Blue, Thirteen Diversions, AfterEffect, Deuce Coupe, In the Upper Room and Songs of Bukovina. He created Mme. de Staël in A Gathering of Ghosts, Chaereas in Of Love and Rage, Winter in The Seasons and leading roles in AFTERITE, Let Me Sing Forevermore and New American Romance.

Skylar Brandt was born in Purchase, New York and began her training at age six with teachers Diana White and Christian Claessens at Scarsdale Ballet Studio. She also studied with Valentina Kozlova, Fabrice Herrault, Susan Jaffe, Irina Dvorovenko and Maxim Beloserkovsky. She attended the ABT Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School from 2005–2009 under the direction of Franco De Vita and spent five summers at ABT’s New York Summer Intensive. From 2006–2009, Brandt was a National Training Scholar and also received the Bender Foundation Scholarship in 2009. She was a silver medalist at Youth America Grand Prix in 2004 and 2008. Brandt joined ABT II (now ABT Studio Company) in 2009 and became an apprentice with the main Company in November 2010. She joined the corps de ballet in June 2011 and was appointed Soloist in August 2015. Her roles with the Company include Polyhymnia in Apollo, Gamzatti in La Bayadère, Medora in Le Corsaire, Lycenion in Daphnis and Chloe, Amour in Don Quixote, The Maiden in Firebird, Lead Can Can in Gaîté Parisienne, Giselle and the peasant pas de deux in Giselle, the title role in The Golden Cockerel, Columbine in Harlequinade, Young Jane in Jane Eyre, Olga in Onegin, Younger Sister in Pillar of Fire, Princess Florine in Ratmansky’s The Sleeping Beauty, Some Assembly Required, the pas de trois in Swan Lake, Princess Praline in Whipped Cream, leading roles in AFTERITE, The Brahms-Haydn Variations, Garden Blue, Piano Concerto #1, Symphonic Variations and Thirteen Diversions and featured roles in Bach Partita, Drink to Me Only With Thine Eyes, Gong, In the Upper Room, Raymonda Divertissements and Sinfonietta. She created a Consort in A Gathering of Ghosts, the Swallow in The Seasons, the Fairy Canari qui chante (Canary) in Ratmansky’s The Sleeping Beauty, a leading role in Her Notes and featured roles in AfterEffect, After You and Praedicere. Brandt was awarded a 2013 Princess Grace Foundation- USA Dance Fellowship. That same year, she was featured in the film Ballet’s Greatest Hits. In 2018, Brandt was the recipient of an unprecedented Special Jury Award for her performances on the Russian television show “Big Ballet.”

Thomas Forster was born in South East London, England and began his ballet training with June Lowdell. At age eight, he joined The Royal Ballet School Associate Programme. At age 11, he commenced full-time dance training at the Elmhurst School of Dance. At age 16, he joined The Royal Ballet’s Upper School and graduated with Honors in 2005. As a student, Forster performed with The Royal Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet and English National Ballet. He joined American Ballet Theatre Studio Company in May 2006, the main Company as an apprentice in January 2007 and the corps de ballet in December 2007. He was appointed Soloist in September 2015. His repertoire with ABT includes the High Brahmin in La Bayadère, a Step-Sister in Cinderella, Espada and Lorenzo in Don Quixote, the second sailor in Fancy Free, Thomas in La Fille mal gardée, Ivan in Firebird, the Duke in Gaîté Parisienne, Albrecht and Hilarion in Giselle, Edward Rochester in Jane Eyre, Her Lover in Jardin aux Lilas, Jailer in Manon, the Nutcracker Prince in Alexei Ratmansky’s The Nutcracker, Chaereas in Of Love and Rage, Sergei in On the Dnieper, Prince Gremin in Onegin, Tybalt, Paris and Lord Montague in Romeo and Juliet, Zephyr in The Seasons, a Fairy Cavalier and Prince Fortune in Ratmansky’s The Sleeping Beauty, von Rothbart (Lakeside and Ballroom) and the Spanish Dance in Swan Lake, The Poet in Les Sylphides, Apollo in Sylvia, Alonso in The Tempest, Prince Coffee, Prince Cocoa and Boris Wutki in Whipped Cream, leading roles in AFTERITE, Bach Partita, Blue Pas de Deux, Her Notes, Souvenir d’un lieu cher, Monotones II, Serenade after Plato’s Symposium, Symphonie Concertante, Symphony in C, Thirteen Diversions, Troika and With a Chance of Rain, and featured roles in AfterEffect, After You, Baker’s Dozen, Company B, Deuce Coupe, Drink to Me Only With Thine Eyes, Duets, Gong, In the Upper Room, One of Three, Overgrown Path, Private Light, Raymonda Divertissements and Sinfonietta. He created Pierrot in Ratmansky’s Harlequinade, the Mouse King in Ratmansky’s The Nutcracker, the English Prince in Ratmansky’s The Sleeping Beauty and leading roles in Garden Blue and A Time There Was, and featured roles in Aftereffect (2013), Dumbarton, Everything Doesn’t Happen at Once and From Here On Out. Forster is an ABT Certified Teacher in the ABT National Training Curriculum and a certified personal trainer with NASM.

CAST OF CENTER STAGE
INCLUDING ZOE SALDANA, AMANDA SCHULL,
SASCHA RADETSKY AND ETHAN STIEFEL
REUNITES TO RAISE FUNDS FOR ARTISTS DURING THE PANDEMIC

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE PRESENTS “UP CLOSE AND CENTER STAGE” SEPTEMBER 1 AT 7:30PM EDT ON YOUTUBE

NEW YORK, NEW YORK and CULVER CITY, CALIF. (August 25, 2020) – Stars of the cult classic film CENTER STAGE, including Zoe Saldana, Amanda Schull, Sascha Radetsky and Ethan Stiefel, will come together on Tuesday, September 1 for a virtual fundraiser in support of the ABT Crisis Relief Fund, which provides aid for dancers, production crew, musicians, ballet staff and faculty impacted by canceled tour engagements due to COVID-19. During the pre-recorded reunion, moderated by “CNN Newsroom” anchor Poppy Harlow, the actors will look back at the making of the film that spawned two sequels and helped bring the ballet world into the pop culture spotlight.

The reunion will premiere simultaneously on American Ballet Theatre and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment YouTube channels at 7:30pm EDT. Viewers on both channels will be able to use YouTube’s integrated fundraising capabilities to donate to the ABT Crisis Relief Fund.

American Ballet Theatre will also host a ticketed pre-event reception via Zoom, beginning at 6:15pm EDT. Moderated by ABT dancer Erica Lall and ABT Accelerator Co-Chair and Gagosian Gallery Director Sarah Hoover, the reception will feature an exclusive conversation with Sascha Radetsky, former ABT Soloist and Artistic Director of ABT Studio Company, Ethan Stiefel, former ABT Principal Dancer and current faculty member, and Amanda Schull. Tickets, benefitting the ABT Crisis Relief Fund, will start at $150. For more information, please email specialevents@abt.org.

Center Stage, which celebrated its 20th anniversary earlier this year, follows a group of ballet students in the competitive world of professional dance where they must devote themselves to their art with the rigor of Olympic athletes. While experiencing the joys, sorrows and conflicts of youth, they vie for a place in a prestigious ballet company and strive to take center stage. Sony Pictures Television recently announced that a series based on the film is currently in development from Sweet/Vicious creator Jennifer Kaytin Robinson, Lawrence Mark, producer of the 2000 movie and its two sequels, and Temple Hill Entertainment. Center Stage is available now on disc and digital.

FOR MORE INFORMATION
American Ballet Theatre: https://www.abt.org/
ABT YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHWzHQb-KlMeAU9t2uANQhA Sony Pictures Home Entertainment YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqH2YMSzMaGN92Vc3VkhWnQ

ABOUT SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT

Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE's global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition, and distribution; television production, acquisition, and distribution; television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; and development of new entertainment products, services and technologies. SPE’s Motion Picture Group production organizations include Columbia Pictures, Screen Gems, TriStar Pictures, Sony Pictures Animation, Stage 6 Films, AFFIRM Films, and Sony Pictures Classics. For additional information, visit http://www.sonypictures.com/corp/divisions.html.