stella abrera Archives

Guillaume Diop, a Black ballet dancer in his early 20s, is captured at the height of a cabriole back. His chin is raised to follow the line of his front arm, in position for first arabesque. He is in costume for Giselle, wearing grey tights and ballet slippers with a dark tunic that has white ruffles at the shoulders and elbows. In the background, a corps of Wilis, dressed in white, pose in B-plus, looking away with their wrists crossed before them.

News of Note: What You Might Have Missed in March 2023

Here are the latest promotions, appointments and departures, as well as notable awards and accomplishments, from March 2023.

Courtney Escoyne March 31st, 2023

On a darkened stage, Jeffrey Cirio arches back to gaze at the ceiling, one splayed hand over his heart, the other tense to the side. His knees seem to buckle, as though he might sink to his knees at any moment. He is bare-chested and wears tight grey pants.

News of Note: What You Might Have Missed in June 2022

Here are the latest promotions, appointments and departures, as well as notable awards and accomplishments, from June 2022.

Courtney Escoyne July 1st, 2022

30 Over 30: Dance Pros Who Prove Success Can Happen at Any Age

Maybe even more than most industries, the dance field is obsessed with youth. We fawn over prodigies, we love to predict the next big thing. Yes, Dance Magazine itself is 100 percent guilty of this, with features like “25 to Watch” and On the Rise. But just because a performing career can be short doesn’t […]

Dance Magazine October 9th, 2021

What It’s Like Working as an Asian American in Dance

“Asian American” is a term that is inadequate to capture the breadth of diversity and experience it seeks to represent. Just as “dance” is shorthand for an endless range of styles from jazz to Kuchipudi, “Asian American” encompasses a vastness of cultures ranging from Korean adoptees to South Indians living in the U.S. The Asian-American […]

Daniel J. Applebaum May 27th, 2021

7 Shows Hitting Screens, Stages or Scenic Settings This Month

Spring is in the air, and performance calendars are (dare we say it?) almost as busy as they ever have been, if still largely housed on the internet. This mix of online screenings, outdoor events and indoor performances for limited audiences caught our eye this month. Caged In Stefanie Batten Bland’s Kolonial Maria Baranova, Courtesy […]

Dance Magazine April 30th, 2021

Stella Abrera's Final ABT Season Was Cut Short, But She's Looking to the Future

Stella Abrera’s name (“stella” means “star” in Latin) proved prophetic in the final stretch of her 24-year career at American Ballet Theatre. Abrera joined ABT’s corps de ballet in 1996, was promoted to soloist in 2001 and, finally, after an uncommonly lengthy stretch, principal in 2015, making her the first Filipina American to reach the […]

Hannah Chang Foster May 19th, 2020

This New Book Celebrates the Strength of Female Athletes, Including Dancers

When Seattle-based journalist Haley Shapley signed up for a bodybuilding show, she was met with mixed reactions. Some people were excited for her, though not everyone was supportive. “Some were really concerned that I might be changing my body in a way that was not pleasing, or lifting too heavy and doing something that might […]

Madeline Schrock April 6th, 2020

News of Note: What You Might Have Missed in November 2019

Here are the latest promotions, appointments and transfers, plus notable awards and accomplishments from the last month. Comings & Goings Stella Abrera has been appointed artistic director of Kaatsbaan, effective January 1. Brett Conway and Laura O’Malley have been named co-artistic directors of SFDanceworks. They succeed founder James Sofranko, who took over the artistic directorship […]

Courtney Escoyne November 29th, 2019