NYCB Promotes Seven Dancers, Six of Them Men

In a move that was both surprising and seemingly inevitable, New York City Ballet closed its fall season by promoting seven dancers. Joseph Gordon, who was promoted to soloist in February 2017, is now a principal dancer. Daniel Applebaum, Harrison Coll, Claire Kretzschmar, Aaron Sanz, Sebastian Villarini-Velez and Peter Walker have been promoted to soloist. […]

NYCB Dancers Speak Out Against Harassment at the Fall Gala

Would New York City Ballet address the elephant in the room? At the company’s annual fall gala last night, where the focus is ostensibly on newly-commissioned ballets and high-profile fashion collaborations, it was impossible not to wonder whether there would be any direct acknowledgement of the turmoil broiling behind the scenes: namely, an explosive lawsuit […]

The Dance Community Responds to NYCB's Firing of Amar Ramasar & Zachary Catazaro

New York City Ballet fired principal dancers Amar Ramasar and Zachary Catazaro on Saturday. Both had initially been suspended until 2019 for engaging in “inappropriate communications,” while principal Chase Finlay, who was the instigator of those communications, resigned. (Although, in a statement on Saturday, NYCB made it clear they had decided to terminate Finlay prior […]

Former NYCB Soloist Savannah Lowery Proves You Really Can Have it All

Savannah Lowery is about as well acquainted with the inner workings of a hospital as she is with the intricate footwork of Dewdrop. As a child, the former New York City Ballet soloist would roam the hospital where her parents worked, pushing buttons and probably getting into too much trouble, she says. While other girls […]

Why NYCB's Russell Janzen Is Taking On Gender-Bending Side Projects

There is no big mystery to why Russell Janzen is often cast in princely parts at New York City Ballet, roles like the cavalier in Diamonds and The Nutcracker, Siegfried in Swan Lake, and the man who partners the “first violin” in the slow movement of Concerto Barocco. His dancing is pristine, and he’s tall […]

What Makes Robbins' Glass Pieces So Powerful

New York City Ballet is celebrating the Jerome Robbins Centennial with twenty (20!) ballets. The great American choreographer died in 1998, so very few of today’s dancers have actually worked with him. There are plenty of stories about how demanding (at times brutally so) he could be in rehearsal. But Peter Boal has written about […]