Originally from Amherst, MA, Chava graduated from Barnard College with a B.A. in Dance and a minor in English. She has worked for Jacob's Pillow Dance and the Bates Dance Festival, and held a fellowship in the Dance Division of the Library of Congress. Chava has performed works by Martha Graham, Mark Morris, Lucinda Childs, Molissa Fenley, Patricia Hoffbauer, Joanna Kotze, Loni Landon and Kate Weare. She continues to create work and perform in the city, and is a member of Debbie Mausner Dance Collective.
Maria Kowroski and Stella Abera. Via Instagram @stellaabreradetsky.
While both based in New York City, American Ballet Theatre and New York City Ballet are very different companies,from their touring schedules to their repertoire and training styles. Nevertheless, two principals—ABT's Stella Abrera and NYCB's Maria Kowroski—have sustained a long-lasting friendship "across the plaza" of Lincoln Center. Both Abrera and Kowroski entered their respective companies in the mid-1990s at age 17, and their careers have run side by side ever since.
Tonight, for the first time ever, these two primas, joined by their colleagues Isabella Boylston and Unity Phelan, will perform together in a new work by Gemma Bond titled Marie Thérèse, presented as part of the annual Dance Against Cancer benefit concert. We caught up with Abrera and Kowroski after a recent rehearsal with Bond to hear what it's like to finally dance together, how they've seen the ballet world change throughout the years, and what advice they'd give to their younger selves.
Gabriel Figueredo in a variation from Raymonda. VAM Productions, Courtesy YAGP.
This week, over 1,000 young hopefuls gathered in New York City for the Youth America Grand Prix finals, giving them the chance to compete for scholarships and contracts to some of the world's top ballet schools and companies. Roughly 85 dancers made it to the final round at Lincoln Center's David H. Koch Theater on Wednesday. Today, the 20th anniversary of YAGP came to a close at the competition's awards ceremony. Read on to find out who won!
Petit Pas's En Pointe bracelet, made from used pointe shoes. Courtesy Petit Pas.
Have you ever looked at the ever-growing pile of dead pointe shoes in the corner of your closet, unsure of what to do with them? It seems wasteful to throw them out, but they can't be recycled. And many dancers feel a sentimental attachment to their old shoes and want to hang onto them. This is where Petit Pas comes in. This new New York City-based company is dedicated to finding a second life for pointe shoes, creating bracelets and other items out of discarded shoes.
Boston Ballet principal Derek Dunn at age 12 in a variation from Flames of Paris at the 2008 YAGP finals. Courtesy YAGP.
The Youth America Grand Prix New York Finals are starting up again this week, running April 12-19. This year, YAGP is celebrating its 20th anniversary. April 18-19 marks the competition's annual Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow gala, featuring 13 pros who are also YAGP alumni. We've rounded up photos and videos from those stars' YAGP years and shared them with you here.
Ingrid Silva pancakes her pointe shoes. Still via YouTube.
Yesterday, pointe shoes made national news when "The Today Show" covered the shift that some brands have made towards creating shoes in shades of brown. The five-minute Sunday Spotlight segment, hosted by NBC's Willie Geist and Morgan Radford, includes interviews with Misty Copeland, Ingrid Silva, Virginia Johnson and Eliza Gaynor Minden.
