Cast Set For American Ballet Theatre's 2026 Fall Season

Casting for American Ballet Theatre's 2026 Fall Season at the David H. Koch Theater was announced by Artistic Director Susan Jaffe. The 2026 Fall Season, scheduled for October 21-31 at the David H. Koch Theater, will include three repertory programs: Fresh Visions and Timeless Classics, Neoclassical Works, and An Elegy and A Dream.

Fresh Visions and Timeless Classics

Fresh Visions and Timeless Classics will be given four performances throughout the Fall Season, on the evenings of October 21, 22, 25, and 27. The program will feature Helen Pickett's Petal, Jiří Kylián's Petite Mort, and Natalia Makarova's Paquita.

Pickett's Petal will have its ABT Company Premiere on Wednesday, October 21. An electrifying, hopeful work inspired by the radiant hues of Gerber daisies, Petal is staged for ABT by Sarah Hillmer and features music by Philip Glass and Thomas Montgomery Newman, set design by Pickett, costumes by Nete Joseph, and lighting design by Brandon Stirling Baker after original lighting by Todd Elmer. Petal received its World Premiere by Aspen Santa Fe Ballet on February 1, 2008, at the Lensic Performing Arts Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Petite Mort was originally created by Jiří Kylián for the Salzburg Festival on the second centenary of Mozart's death, incorporating the slow movements of two of Mozart's most beautiful and popular piano concertos. With set design by Kylián, costumes by Joke Visser, and lighting by Kylián and Joop Caboort, Petite Mort features six men, six women, and six foils and expresses themes of aggression, desire, energy, silence, anarchy, and vulnerability. Petite Mort was given its World Premiere at the Salzburg Festival on August 23, 1991, at the Kleines Festpielhaus, Salzburg, Austria. It received its American Ballet Theatre Company Premiere at City Center, New York, on October 30, 2003, and was last performed by the Company in 2023. Petite Mort is staged for ABT by Elke Schepers and Shirley Esseboom.

Christine Shevchenko and Joo Won Ahn will lead the opening night performance of Paquita on the evening of October 21. Other debuts in these roles include Devon Teuscher and Aran Bell on October 22 and Chloe Misseldine on the evening of October 25. Choreographed by Natalia Makarova after Marius Petipa, the grand divertissement from Paquita is a showcase of classical ballet elegance and virtuosity. Set to music by Ludwig Minkus and arranged by John Lanchbery, this production features scenery and costumes by Jose Varona and lighting by Alex Nichols after Robert Thomson. Makarova's staging of Paquita received its World Premiere by American Ballet Theatre on December 6, 1983, at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., led by Martine van Hamel and Patrick Bissell, and was last performed by ABT in 1996. Paquita has been restaged for ABT by Makarova and Nancy Raffa.

Neoclassical Works

Neoclassical Works, to be presented October 23-25, will feature Frederick Ashton's Birthday Offering, Kyle Abraham's Mercurial Son, and George Balanchine's Ballet Imperial.

Hee Seo and Thomas Forster will lead the Fall Season's first performance of Frederick Ashton's Birthday Offering on the evening of October 23. Devon Teuscher and Joo Won Ahn will debut in these roles at the matinee on Saturday, October 24. Birthday Offering was created in 1956 for The Royal Ballet's 25th anniversary and is highlighted by unique solos for seven ballerinas. The ballet received its ABT Company Premiere on October 25, 1989, at Jesse H. Jones Hall in Houston, Texas, featuring Susan Jaffe, Cheryl Yeager, Amanda McKerrow, Julie Kent, Leslie Browne, Alessandra Ferri, and Christine Dunham. Birthday Offering is set to music by Alexander Glazunov, with costumes by Andre Levasseur and lighting by Steven Shelley and is staged for ABT by Helen Crawford. The ballet was last performed by ABT in 2010.

Mercurial Son, Kyle Abraham's first work for American Ballet Theatre, is driven by Grischa Lichtenberger's electronic score and propelled by swift, intricately layered movement. Mercurial Son is staged by Stephanie Terasaki and features costumes by Karen Young, costume design supervision by Caitlin Rain, and lighting by Dan Scully. It received its World Premiere at the Koch Theater on October 16, 2024, danced by Cassandra Trenary, Catherine Hurlin, Carlos Gonzalez, Joseph Markey, Ingrid Thoms, Sierra Armstrong, and Andrew Robare.

Ballet Imperial will have its first performance of the Fall Season on the evening of October 23, led by Chloe Misseldine, James Whiteside, and Yoon Jung Seo. SunMi Park will debut in the leading role at the matinee on October 24. Choreographed by George Balanchine and set to Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky's Concerto No. 2 in G for Piano and Orchestra, this work evokes the era of Russia's Imperial Ballet with its grandeur. Ballet Imperial is staged by Colleen Neary and features stage and costume design by Jean-Marc Puissant and lighting by Mark Stanley. The ballet received its World Premiere by American Ballet Caravan at the Hunter College Playhouse, New York, New York, on May 27, 1941, danced by Marie-Jeanne, Gisella Caccialanza, and William Dollar. The ABT Company Premiere of Ballet Imperial was given on February 10, 1988, at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago, Illinois, danced by Susan Jaffe, Ross Stretton, and Amanda McKerrow.

An Elegy and A Dream

An Elegy and A Dream, scheduled for the evenings of October 28 and 30 and the matinee and evening on October 31, features Brady Farrar's World Premiere Trio Élégiaque, the Company Premiere of Jae Man Joo's Flight, and Frederick Ashton's The Dream.

Trio Élégiaque, choreographed by ABT corps de ballet member Brady Farrar, will have its World Premiere on Wednesday, October 28, danced by Devon Teuscher, Aran Bell, Léa Fleytoux, Joseph Markey, SunMi Park, and Thomas Forster. Chloe Misseldine, Jarod Curley, Catherine Hurlin, Michael de la Nuez, Sierra Armstrong, and Calvin Royal III will debut in these roles on Friday, October 30. Farrar has choreographed multiple works for ABT Studio Company and Trio Élégiaque marks his inaugural creation for American Ballet Theatre's main Company. Set to the first movement of 'Trio Élégiaque No. 2' by Sergei Rachmaninoff, the ballet explores loss and memory in a layered ode to Rachmaninoff and his friend and mentor, Tchaikovsky. Trio Élégiaque features costumes by Mark Eric and lighting by Brad Fields.

Herman Cornejo will dance all four performances of Jae Man Joo's Flight, a solo merging poignant movement with haunting cello accompaniment in a moody exploration of human strength and psychological tension. Set to music by Johann Sebastian Bach and featuring lighting by Joo and Michael Korsch, Flight was premiered by Complexions Contemporary Ballet in 2012. Cornejo previously performed this solo at The Joyce Ballet Festival: UNITE in 2024.

The Fall Season's first performance of The Dream on October 28 will be led by Catherine Hurlin in her debut as Titania, Daniel Camargo as Oberon, and Jake Roxander as Puck. The performance on the evening of October 30 will feature debuts by Hee Seo as Titania, Isaac Hernández as Oberon, and Takumi Miyake as Puck. The Dream is Frederick Ashton's beguiling retelling of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream and its comedy of errors set in the magical woods of Victorian England. This happy ode to the illusory nature of love is set to a spellbinding score by Felix Mendelssohn, arranged by John Lanchbery, with sets and costumes by David Walker and lighting by John B. Read. The Dream received its World Premiere by The Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London on April 2, 1964, danced by Antoinette Sibley as Titania, Anthony Dowell as Oberon, and Keith Martin as Puck. The Dream was given its American Ballet Theatre Company Premiere at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York on May 24, 2002, danced by Alessandra Ferri as Titania, Ethan Stiefel as Oberon, and Herman Cornejo as Puck. ABT last performed The Dream in 2023.