 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "School of American Ballet" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(November 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| School of American Ballet | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
 | |
United States | |
| Coordinates | 40°46′27″N73°59′03″W / 40.77417°N 73.98417°W /40.77417; -73.98417 |
| Information | |
| Type | Ballet school |
| Established | 1934; 92 years ago (1934) |
| Campus type | Urban |
| Website | sab |
TheSchool of American Ballet (SAB) is the associate school of theNew York City Ballet, a ballet company based at theLincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. The school trains students from the age of six, with professional vocational ballet training for students aged 11–18. Graduates of the school achieve employment with leading ballet companies worldwide, and in the United States withNew York City Ballet,American Ballet Theatre,Boston Ballet,San Francisco Ballet,Miami City Ballet,Pacific Northwest Ballet andHouston Ballet.
The school was founded by the Russo-Georgian-bornchoreographerGeorge Balanchine, and philanthropistsLincoln Kirstein andEdward Warburg in 1934.[1] Balanchine's self- prescribed edict, "But first, a school", is indicative of his adherence to the ideals of the training that was fostered by theImperial Ballet School where he received his training. He realized that most great dance companies were fed by an academy closely associated with it. This practice afforded scores of dancers, well versed in the specifics of his technique and choreographic style. Among the teachers there were many Russian emigres who fled theRussian Revolution:Pierre Vladimiroff,Felia Doubrovska,[2] Anatole Oboukhoff,Hélène Dudin,Ludmilla Schollar,Antonina Tumkovsky, and Alexandra Danilova. Their intention was to establish a major classical ballet company in America, which would lead to the formation of today's New York City Ballet. The school was formed to train and feed dancers into the company. It opened at 637 Madison Avenue with 32 students on January 2, 1934, and the students first performed that June.[3][4] Seventy-five years later, the School was awarded theNational Medal of Arts by PresidentBarack Obama.[5]
Students are chosen through audition. Children's division auditions for the 2007–08 school year included six-year-olds for the first time; previously, the youngest students were required to turn eight in the year they began their studies. Children in the younger divisions are able to perform in various ballets with the company including George Balanchine's famousThe Nutcracker,A Midsummer Night's Dream,Peter Martins'sSwan Lake, andThe Sleeping Beauty. The most advanced students perform in a workshop at the end of each year where the heads of ballet companies choose several of them to join their companies, includingNew York City Ballet. This started in 1965, whenAlexandra Danilova sought and received approval from Balanchine to produce a spring workshop performance for the students. These workshops have become an important preview for many outstanding dancers.[6]
The school also hosts a summer program, where it selects about 200 dance students from across the country to train for five weeks. This summer program is one of the most selective ballet summer programs in the country.[citation needed]
The Preparatory and Children's divisions conduct their programs in the afternoon and children are able to attend school as usual. Students in the Intermediate and Advanced divisions (ages 14 to 18), due to more rigorous pre-professional training, usually enrol in avirtual high school program or attend either theProfessional Performing Arts School orProfessional Children's School. The SAB requires all students to complete their high school diploma requirements by the time they graduate.[7]
As of January 2024, the faculty of The School of American Ballet includesJonathan Stafford (artistic director and chair of faculty),Aesha Ash (associate chair of faculty),Dena Abergel,Marika Anderson, Meaghan Dutton-O'Hara,Megan Fairchild,Gonzalo Garcia,Craig Hall, Adam Hendrickson,Arch Higgins, Anthony Huxley,Sterling Hyltin,Katrina Killian (children's division manager), Lauren King,Meagan Mann,Kay Mazzo (former chairman of faculty), Christopher Charles McDaniel,Allen Peiffer (professional placement manager),Suki Schorer (Brown Foundation senior faculty chair), andAndrew Scordato.
According to SAB, alumni of the School of American Ballet make up over 90% of New York City Ballet, all but two of the company mem at present.[when?][8][9] Some alumni includeMary Ellen Moylan,Maria Tallchief,Tanaquil LeClercq,Francisco Moncion, John Clifford,[10][11]Nicholas Magallanes,[12][13][14]Lois Bewley,[15]Jacques d'Amboise,Debra Austin,Margaret Severin-Hansen,SarahAnne Perel,Jillana,Allegra Kent,Arthur Mitchell,Wilhelmina Frankfurt,Patricia McBride,Alicia Holloway,Paul Frame,Peter Frame,Edward Villella,Suzanne Farrell,Kay Mazzo,Kathryn Morgan, Garielle Whittle,Helgi Tomasson,Fernando Bujones,Gelsey Kirkland,Heather Watts,Merrill Ashley,Lourdes Lopez,Jock Soto,Peter Boal,Olivia Boisson,Alexandra Waterbury,Victoria Rowell,Kyra Nichols,Darci Kistler,Patrick Bissell,Damian Woetzel,Ethan Stiefel,Wendy Whelan,Alan Bergman,Llanchie Stevenson,George Lee,Sarah Hay,Arlene Shuler, andPaloma Herrera as well as celebritiesSean Young,Ansel Elgort,Ashlee Simpson,Gregori Lukas,Macaulay Culkin,Lawrence Leritz,Vanessa Carlton,Yvonne Craig,Megan Mullally,Alex Westerman, andMadeleine Martin.[16]
Lawrence A. Wien, his daughters and their families founded the Mae L. Wien Awards in their mother's name. SAB students are chosen each year on the basis of their outstanding promise and a faculty member is honored for distinguished service. FormerNew York City Ballet ballet master in chief and SAB chairman of faculty, Peter Martins used to occasionally give a third award to a young choreographer at his discretion.
School of American Ballet is featured in the 2020Disney+ documentaryOn Pointe, showing the lives of several students during a year at the school.[17]
Indeed, Martin is a veteran of the stage, having studied at the School of American Ballet, despite being too young to have watched Duchovny in the role that made him a household name in the '90s - playing Special Agent Fox Mulder in The X-Files.See also:
