INFINITE STEPS: New Book Chronicles Lives of 33 Dancers in Ballet
Gavin Larsen and Gene Schiavone collaborate on a new ballet book, set to release in March 2026
By: Stephi Wild Jan. 16, 2026
Infinite Steps: Thirty-Three Dancers and Their Lives in Ballet from author and dancer Gavin Larsen (Being a Ballerina: The Power and Perfection of a Dancing Life) and Gene Schiavone, former staff photographer at American Ballet Theatre, explores the personal journeys of ballet dancers in photos and words, introducing readers to a range of artists from newly professional to veterans and former dancers. Published by University Press of Florida, Infinite Steps: Thirty-Three Dancers and Their Lives in Ballet is set for release on Tuesday, March 17, 2026.
Larsen's illuminating essays reveal the personal motivations, triumphs, and trials of dancers at different stages of their ballet careers. Each essay is paired with Schiavone's arresting studio and performance photos, offering glimpses of the skill, accomplishment, and joy of a life in dance. Dancers depicted in the book include American Ballet Theatre current and former performers Maxim Beloserkovsky, Skylar Brandt, Misty Copeland, Herman Cornejo, Irina Dvorovenko, Paloma Herrera, Susan Jaffe, Xiomara Reyes, Craig Salstein, Cory Stearns, and Devon Teuscher – all captured during Schiavone's two-decade career photographing the company. International Artists appearing in the book include Roberto Bolle, Alina Cojocaru, Maria Kochetkova, Anastasia and Denis Matvienko, and Viola Pantuso. Dancers who performed with a wide range of American companies are also represented including Iyun Ashani Harrison (Dance Theatre of Harlem and Ballet Hispanico) and Joseph Gatti (Cincinnati Ballet and Boston Ballet), as well as dancers in the early stages of their professional careers.
“What started as a book about ballet dancers became something much more,” said Larsen. “It evolved into a collection of shared stories about the questions we all face in life whether you're a dancer or not: ambition, purpose, uncertainty, triumph, and change. Infinite Steps is a book about the human experience as seen through the lens of dance.”
“I wanted to assemble the dancers appearing in Infinite Steps after meeting so many young students in my studio,” said Schiavone. “It was their moms who would ask me: ‘What do I do next? Where do I go from here?' I'm just a guy who takes photos so I thought of this project as offering advice from the people who might have some answers. Every artist in this book has inspired me – from world-famous names to dancers whose time on stage was fleeting. My hope is that their images and stories will inspire and give direction to others.”
Artists of Infinite Steps: Thirty-Three Dancers and Their Lives in Ballet
- Alina Cojocaru
- Laine Mae Kirkeide
- Olivia Yoch
- Jacob Hughes
- Skylar Brandt
- Kylie Edwards
- Connor Hamilton
- Vjola Hajati
- Paloma Herrera
- Marja' Quaqua
- Irina Dvorovenko and Maxim Beloserkovsky
- Iyun Ashani Harrison
- Viola Pantuso
- Devon Teuscher
- Trinity Cox
- Anastasia and Denis Matvienko
- Annalise VeldhuyzenvanZanten
- Joseph Gatti
- “Marie”
- Karine Seneca
- Xiomara Reyes
- Hailey Fairhurst
- Maria Kochetkova
Infinite Steps:Thirty-Three Dancers and Their Lives in Ballet, 200 pp., is available to order in paperback for $35.00 through upress.ufl.edu.
Videos