Hee Seo News

Segerstrom Center announces the return of its popular holiday tradition – American Ballet Theatre's captivating production of The Nutcracker. Co-presented by the Center and ABT with choreography by ABT Artist in Residence Alexei Ratmansky, The Nutcracker was praised by The New York Times as “A production like no other, made with complete theatrical authority from first to last.” The ballet will be given 12 performances December 13 through 22 in Segerstrom Hall. ABT Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie has released principal casting, which will include Hee Seo as Clara, the Princess and Cory Stearns as The Nutcracker Prince on opening night December 13. Pacific Symphony will perform for all performances.

Casting for American Ballet Theatre's 2019 Fall season at the David H. Koch Theater was announced today by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.

Swan Lake is an icon, the Hamlet of the ballet world and, much like Hamlet, audiences might need reminding that it is more than images and a melody; it is a bizarre and symphonic evening-length work of poetry. ABT's production puts full faith in the breadth of this work, leaving the magical and melodramatic elements leaning more towards camp than enchantment. Luckily, the capacity of Swan Lake to present the expressivity of the human form is on full display. With principal dancer Hee Seo leading the performance as an Odette seemingly etched in glass, the centrality of Swan Lake to the choreographic art form is reaffirmed.

Casting for the third and fourth weeks of American Ballet Theatre's 2019 Spring season at the Metropolitan Opera House was announced today by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.

Casting for the first two weeks of American Ballet Theatre's 2019 Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House was announced today by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.

Ballet Stars of today, and many of tomorrow's talented hopefuls, performed at YAGP's anniversary gala, Founded in 1999 by Larissa and Gennadi Saveliev, it is now celebrating its twentieth anniversary. Many of today's most prominent ballet performers first began their careers here.

The world's largest student ballet scholarship competition - YOUTH AMERICA GRAND PRIX (YAGP) is celebrating its 20th Anniversary Season, with its NYC Finals held at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center. The week of ballet festivities will include YAGP's Final Round (April 17th), YAGP's critically acclaimed Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow Gala performance and dinner (April 18th), with a repeat Gala performance on April 19th. Lastly, on April 20th, YAGP will present an International Dance School Festival, where dancers from all over the globe will perform works representing each school's style and artistic tradition, ranging from beloved classics to cutting-edge contemporary dance.

Casting for American Ballet Theatre's performances of Whipped Cream at the Auditorium Theatre was announced today by American Ballet Theatre (ABT) Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie. Auditions have also been announced for supernumerary roles. 

The Nutcracker choreographed by Alexei Ratmansky begins with a refreshingly unusual holiday carnival mood for children, and ends with a strongly projected glimpse in to a positive future. It is not just a journey in to the dream of a little girl, but a dream held by adults as well.

American Ballet Theatre's 2019 Spring season at the Metropolitan Opera House, May 13 - July 6, will feature a World Premiere work by ABT Artist in Residence Alexei Ratmansky in programs dedicated entirely to his works in honor of the choreographer's 10th year with the Company.

Programming for American Ballet Theatre's 2018 Fall season, October 17-28 at the David H. Koch Theater, was announced today by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie. The season will feature World Premieres by Michelle Dorrance and Jessica Lang, as well as centennial tribute performances of Jerome Robbins's and Leonard Bernstein's Fancy Free. Check out a video preview of the season below!

On Friday July 13th, I witnessed the incredible performances of Misty Copeland, Isabella Boylston and Jeffrey Cirio as the lead soloists in the mesmerizing and captivating La Bayadere', at the world-renowned Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, at the Music Center in Downtown Los Angeles. ABT was presented as part of the 15th season of Gloria Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center. Thank you, Gloria, for being so generous in your love of Dance. It is a vitally important part of Los Angeles being able to appreciate Dance as one of the primary communicative Arts worth sponsoring and being available to our entire community. It is more important than ever, as, sadly, our support and funding for the Arts keeps dwindling on especially the National level.

Casting for the seventh and eighth weeks of American Ballet Theatre's 2018 Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House was announced today by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.

The Music Center welcomes the return of American Ballet Theatre (ABT) with the company's production of the 19th century classic ballet, La Bayadere, which will be performed at The Music Center's Dorothy Chandler Pavilion for the first time from July 13 - 15, 2018.  The final engagement of the 15th season of Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center, La Bayadere is set in royal India and tells the story of eternal love, fate, vengeance and justice.  The production will highlight ABT's stellar roster of international ballet stars, including Principal Dancers Isabella Boylston, Jeffrey Cirio, Misty Copeland, Hee Seo, Cory Stearns, Gillian Murphy, Devon Teuscher and Christine Shevchenko.

Kevin McKenzie, the Artistic Director of American Ballet Theater since 1991, has created an admirably faithful staging of the company's 1987 production of Giselle to the music of Adolf Adam. A veteran himself of the leading role of Albrecht, McKenzie has kept the beloved classic alive for today's audiences with all of the requisite charm and dance mime in Act ! and plenty of eerily dramatic tension in Act II.

American Ballet Theatre's 2018 Spring Season opens with eight performances of Giselle beginning Monday evening, May 14, led by Hee Seo in the title role, opposite Roberto Bolle as Albrecht and Gillian Murphy as Myrta. Guest Artist Natalia Osipova will perform the title role on Friday, May 18 opposite David Hallberg as Albrecht.

American Ballet Theatre's 2018 Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House, May 14 - July 7, will feature the World Premieres of AFTERITE by Wayne McGregor and Harlequinade by ABT Artist in Residence Alexei Ratmansky. Tickets for ABT's 2018 Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House go on sale at the box office on Sunday, March 25 at 12 Noon.

Returning for its annual Kennedy Center engagement, American Ballet Theatre (ABT) brings two different programs to the Opera House stage,January 30 February 4. Whipped Cream, the acclaimed all-new, evening-length work from world-renowned choreographer and ABT Artist-in-Residence Alexei Ratmansky, makes its D.C. premiere February 1 4, while a program of repertory works, January 30 and 31, includes the D.C. premieres of Ratmansky's Serenade after Plato's Symposium and Benjamin Millepied's I Feel the Earth Move.

American Ballet Theatre (ABT) hosted its annual Holiday Benefit dinner and performance, December 11, 2017, at The Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills. BroadwayWorld has photos from the evening below!

Casting for American Ballet Theatre's The Nutcracker, co-presented by Segerstrom Center for the Arts and ABT, was announced today by Kevin McKenzie, ABT Artistic Director and Terry Dwyer, Segerstrom Center President. Choreographed by ABT Artist in Residence Alexei Ratmansky, The Nutcracker will be given 13 performances at Segerstrom Center for the Arts, December 7-17, 2017. Misty Copeland and Daniil Simkin will lead the opening night cast on December 7 dancing the roles of Clara, the Princess and Nutcracker, the Prince, respectively. Subsequent casts include Sarah Lane and Herman Cornejo, Gillian Murphy and James Whiteside, Stella Abrera and Alexandre Hammoudi, and Hee Seo and Cory Stearns in the leading roles.