Kevin McKenzie, American Ballet Theatre’s longtime artistic director, announced yesterday that he will retire at the end of 2022, after three decades at the helm. He will continue to oversee the company’s 2021–22 season while a search for his successor begins this summer. In an interview with The New York Times’ Rosalyn Sulcas, McKenzie noted […]

The Australian Ballet has long been a home away from home for David Hallberg. During a two-year struggle with an ankle injury that required two surgeries, he spent the most pivotal time of his recuperation in Melbourne, working with TAB’s in-house medical and physical therapy team. Combined with a decade of guest performances there, including […]

American Ballet Theatre typically schedules a long layoff after its marathon season at the Metropolitan Opera House, a moment for its tired artists to breathe. But Skylar Brandt doesn’t really do downtime. After moving out of the Met’s basement dressing rooms each July, she books sessions with her coaches, the former ABT stars Irina Dvorovenko […]

What does it take to succeed as a dancer? Susan Jones—the American Ballet Theatre regisseur who first joined the company as a dancer on January 11, 1971—has 50 years of experience in watching what it takes to create a fulfilling ballet career. Jones was first hired by ABT co-founder Lucia Chase when the company needed […]

November 21 marks Natalia Makarova’s 80th birthday. The ballerina made international headlines in September 1970 when she defected from the Soviet Union while on tour with the Kirov Ballet in London. That December, she made her American Ballet Theatre debut, an association that altered the company’s trajectory. “In ballet, stardom doesn’t come overnight as it […]

Imagine ending a successful dancing career, only to return to it six years later. Now imagine that this comeback is interrupted by a crisis of international proportions. This has been Eric Tamm’s trajectory. In 2014, after eight years in the corps de ballet of American Ballet Theatre, he walked away. Even though he was a […]

Here are the latest promotions, appointments and departures, plus notable awards and accomplishments, from the last month. Comings & Goings At American Ballet Theatre , Joo Won Ahn, Aran Bell, Skylar Brandt, Thomas Forster, Calvin Royal III and Cassandra Trenary have been promoted to principal, Gabe Stone Shayer to soloist. At Pennsylvania Ballet, Jack Thomas […]

In her day job, Cassandra Trenary is known for her classical repertoire. But away from the stage, the American Ballet Theatre principal gives off Old Hollywood vibes, thanks, in large part, to her platinum hair—something that was fittingly inspired by her work. “We wear platinum wigs for the third act of The Sleeping Beauty, and […]