Kathryn Morgan, Kennedy Center Headliner
Kathryn Morgan. Photo by Erin Kestenbaum, Courtesy Morgan.
After an illness sidelined her career,Kathryn Morgan transitioned from rising New York City Ballet star to freelancer. Now, the fearless dancer has partnered with outreach organization Ballet in the City to headline her own evening at the Kennedy Center, Mar. 29-30. For Pointe‘s bi-weekly newsletter, we chatted with Morgan about this special performance.
How involved where you in choosing the program?
It was entirely my decision, which was really fun because you don’t get to pick what you dance in a company. Obviously the Romeo and Juliet balcony pas de deux is on there–that’s my favorite role. The Don Quixote pas de deux–I’ve never danced it before but always wanted to. And then some excerpts from Who Cares? to pay homage to my time at City Ballet. There’s also a new piece by Jesse Carrey, plus excerpts from To Dance: The Musical and a brand-new The Red Shoes, which is a nine-minute solo choreographed by Donald Garverick.
Morgan in Swan Lake. Photo by Alexis Ziemski, Courtesy Ballet in the City.
Why is it important for you to be a part of Ballet in the City?
Their mission is to present dancers around the country to bring the message of ballet to anybody. And I love that. Especially with my YouTube channel, I try to open the curtain on the ballet world. I think this organization is doing that.
How will you keep your stamina up during such a long program?
For me, it’s about breathing. In the dance world, we call it “puffy.” Once you get to that point of absolute exhaustion early on, the rest becomes easy. My goal is to be completely worn out by the end of Don Q, which will happen because it’s hard. After that, I’ll be great for the rest of the evening.
What’s next for you?
After the Kennedy Center, I have a couple things in the works, but I’m actually going to start looking back into companies. I’m gonna shop around a bit and see what’s out there. We’ll see what happens!
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