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Ballet Stars

7 Tough-Love Lessons from the Legendary Irina Kolpakova

Irina Kolpakova in the studio with Katherine Williams. Photo by Quinn Wharton for Pointe.

Being coached by a treasure like former Kirov prima Irina Kolpakova is an experience most dancers only dream of. But company members at American Ballet Theatre have been the lucky beneficiaries of her wisdom since 1990. Thanks to Instagram, where pros like Gillian Murphy and James Whiteside share snippets of their sessions with Kolpakova, any ballet lover can be a fly on the wall during rehearsals with the famed ballet mistress.

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Love It or Hate It, Our Editors Discuss All Things Jane Eyre

Devon Teuscher performing the titular role in Jane Eyre. Photo by Gene Schiavone, Courtesy ABT

Story ballets that debut during American Ballet Theatre's spring season at the Metropolitan Opera House are always the subject of much curiosity—and, sometimes, much debate. Cathy Marston's Jane Eyre was no different. The ballet follows the eponymous heroine of Charlotte Brönte's novel as she grows from a willful orphan to a self-possessed governess, charting her romance with the haughty Mr. Rochester and the social forces that threaten to tear them apart.

While the ballet was warmly received in the UK when Northern Ballet premiered it in 2016, its reception from New York City–based critics has been far less welcoming. A group of editors from Dance Magazine and two of our sister publications, Dance Spirit and Pointe, sat down to discuss our own reactions.

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Ballet Stars

No One Said It Would Be Easy: 4 Pros on the Sacrifices They Made to Prioritize Training

Nashville Ballet's Kayla Rowser and Nicolas Scheuer in Swan Lake. Karyn Photography, Courtesy Nashville Ballet.

Pre-professional ballet students know this to be true: Training comes first; everything else fits when—or if—it can. Are the sacrifices pre-professional ballet dancers make to pursue a highly competitive career worth it? Four professionals weigh in.

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Trending

These 3 Dancers' Instagram Photography Offers an Intimate Look Into Life at Some of the World's Biggest Companies

A shot from NYCB dancer Devin Alberda's Instagram account, @devinalberda.

From rehearsal bloopers to tour shots, Instagram gives us an unprecedented glimpse into the lives of the dancers we love. Now, three pros are taking it to the next level. American Ballet Theatre soloist Cassandra Trenary, Royal Ballet first soloist Marcelino Sambé and New York City Ballet corps dancer Devin Alberda have created Instagram accounts dedicated to highlighting their more serious interest in photography, while giving viewers an intimate peak at the candid moments that make up company life.

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Ballet Stars

ABT Dancer Receives the Highest Civilian Honor for Saving a Man's Life

NY State Senator Brad Hoylman and ABT dancer Gray Davis at the award ceremony.

"I'm here because we have a hero in our midst," said New York State Senator Brad Hoylman before American Ballet Theatre's company class this morning. He was addressing ABT corps dancer Gray Davis, who you may remember saved the life of a man who was pushed onto the subway tracks this summer. The Senator was there to present Davis with the New York State Liberty Medal, the highest honor bestowed by a member of the State Senate.

Company members, ABT staff and donors, and reporters were present in the studio at Lincoln Center's Koch Theater this morning where the company is in residence for their fall season. Artistic director Kevin McKenzie introduced Senator Hoylman, who retold the story of Davis' act of heroism before placing the medal around his neck. "You know, one of your fellow greats, Mikhail Baryshnikov said, "dancers are made, not born,' and I think the same can be said of heroes," said Senator Hoylman. "Heroes are made, not born. They seize a split-second moment, they embrace danger selflessly and they become role models for all of us."

After the crowd broke into applause, Senator Hoylman called up Davis' wife, ABT soloist Cassandra Trenary to join him at the podium. Wiping tears from her eyes, Trenary stood with Davis while he shared a few words in his quiet and reserved manner. "We're dancers, but we're human beings first," he said. "Thank you from the bottom of my heart."

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Ballet Stars

Aliens, Eyeballs and Monsters, Oh My! ABT Dancer Creates a Very Different Kind of Leotard

P.O. Alienz in Lavender Leotard; Paulina Waski modelling a Kreature Kulture t-shirt. Photos Courtesy Paulina Waski.

Walk into any ballet class and you're bound to see a row of dancers clad in leotards patterned with dainty flowers and lace. But nearly three years ago, American Ballet Theatre corps dancer Paulina Waski wore a very different kind of leotard to class—and her colleagues loved it. Now an average day at ABT includes any number of dancers in leotards featuring angry aliens, detached eyeballs and grinning monsters.

"My dad, John, is an artist, and he draws all these crazy creatures," Waski explains. "One year he did what he called his paper plate project; he drew a new creature onto a paper plate every single day for 365 days. I thought, 'he should put one on a leotard!' He screen printed one onto one of my old leotards himself, and when I wore it to class everyone was wowed." And so, Kreature Kulture was born.


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Ballet Stars

Daniil Simkin Presents New Multimedia Work at the Guggenheim

Daniil Simkin. Courtesy Works & Process at the Guggenheim.

On the heels of his successful 2015 project INTENSIO , American Ballet Theatre principal Daniil Simkin is presenting a new multi-media work at the Guggenheim Museum's Works & Process series set in the museum's multistoried rotunda. "The rotunda is iconic, white and symmetrical," he says. "Having dance and projection in there is an amazing sight." The new work, created by Hubbard Street Dance Chicago resident choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo, is titled Falls the Shadow and will premiere September 4.

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Call Board

Isabella Boylston Lights Up Sun Valley

Boylston working with choreographer Gemma Bond

With most of American Ballet Theatre's classical repertoire under her belt, principal Isabella Boylston is ready for a new challenge, specifically, launching Ballet Sun Valley, a dance festival with educational outreach in her hometown of Sun Valley, Idaho. "I'm in a place in my career where I can expend a little more creative energy on outside projects," she says. This year, her long-held dream will become reality, with performances on August 22 and 24, and free dance classes on August 23. "Sun Valley has a successful symphony, and a lot of people are interested in the arts," Boylston says. "When I was there three years ago, I realized the Sun Valley Pavilion would be the perfect venue for dance." Hilarie Neely, Boylston's first ballet teacher, put her in touch with a team of executive producers who have assisted with fundraising and technical logistics.

Once Boylston knew the festival was happening, she was faced with the task of creating dynamic programming. "All the dancers I'm inviting are close friends who I've danced with before, and choreographers I have relationships with," she says. Audiences can expect classical repertoire, plus ballets by Justin Peck, Alexei Ratmansky and Pontus Lidberg.

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Ballet Stars

Watch Cassandra Trenary and Alexei Ratmansky Discuss Overcoming Career Obstacles and More in This Exclusive Interview

American Ballet Theatre's Cassandra Trenary seems to have it all—not only is our June/July 2016 cover star a dazzling soloist at ABT, she has a sunny, down-to-earth personality and a life-saving hero for a husband. But her first year in the company had its fair share of disappointments—in fact, she almost left dance altogether to pursue acting.

In May, the National YoungArts Foundation, an organization that provides cash awards and mentorship to aspiring performing artists, brought Trenary (herself a 2011 YoungArts winner) and ABT artist in residence Alexei Ratmansky together for a salon-style discussion. Together they talked about critical turning points in their careers, as well as the challenges of navigating the dance world as a young professional. Below are exclusive excerpts of their interview—we hope their words inspire you as much as they inspire us!



There's still time to enter YoungArts's national arts competition for a chance at cash awards, workshops and more. Click here for information on how to apply.

Ballet Stars

ABT's Gray Davis Heroically Saves Man From Subway Tracks

As a member of American Ballet Theatre, Gray Davis is used to being in the spotlight. But this past weekend, all eyes were on Davis for a totally different reason, after he jumped down onto the subway tracks in New York City to save a man who had allegedly been pushed.

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Views

Daniil Simkin and Cassandra Trenary Define the Art of Movement In This Video

Deborah Ory and Ken Brower have done it again. The husband-wife team behind NYC Dance Project recently released a promotional video for their new photography book, The Art of Movement. (By the way, we’re giving away four copies for free—click here to enter.) Shot in black and white at the NeueHouse Madison Square in New York City, the film stars American Ballet Theatre principal Daniil Simkin and soloist Cassandra Trenary in all of their stunning glory. Dancing both together and individually, the pair swirl, leap and undulate as dreamily as the music they’re dancing to (Dustin O’Halloran’s “We Move Lightly”).

Both artists have been in the news lately: Simkin, whose INTENSIO project was a big hit last year, announced a new project blending technology and dance at The Guggenheim Museum next September, as part of its Works & Process Rotunda Project. And next week on November 15, Trenary and corps member Gabe Stone Shayer will represent ABT at the Erik Bruhn Prize competition.

For more news on all things ballet, don't miss a single issue.

News

Big Names Join Faculty of ABT's JKO School

Ethan Stiefel on the set of Flesh and Bone. Photo by Myles Aronowitz, courtesy Starz.

Earlier this year, former American Ballet Theatre principal Cynthia Harvey became the new artistic director of the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School. Now, she's made her first faculty appointments. The faculty for the 2016-17 school year (Harvey's first season in her new role) was announced yesterday, and the lineup is pretty stellar. Here are a few of the highlights:

—Ethan Stiefel, the former ABT principal, Center Stage star and Flesh and Bone choreographer, will join the faculty as a principal guest instructor, working with the pre-professional division students.

—Robert LaFosse, a former ABT and New York City Ballet principal, will also teach in the pre-professional division.

—Former Hamburg Ballet and Royal Winnipeg Ballet dancer Fabrice Herrault is also joining the faculty. Now a world-renowned teacher, he's worked with dancers like Aran Bell and The Royal Ballet's Beatriz Stix-Brunell.

—A former dancer with Paris Opéra Ballet, Karin Averty has become a well-known New York City-based teacher, and now joins the JKO School's faculty.

This year's students are a lucky bunch. The JKO School is known for producing some of ABT's most exciting rising dancers—artists like Calvin Royal III, Skylar Brandt and our June/July cover star, Cassandra Trenary. And with such a strong group of teachers leading the way, who knows what exciting things we might expect from a new crop of students.

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