'ABT Studio Company: Spring Moves' to Return to NYU Skirball in May
The two performances take place on Friday, May 16 and Saturday, May 17 at 7:30 P.M.
By: Josh Sharpe Apr. 16, 2025
ABT Studio Company: Spring Moves is returning to NYU Skirball for two performances on Friday, May 16 and Saturday, May 17 at 7:30 P.M. The two-night engagement will feature a World Premiere by ABT dancer Brady Farrar; the New York City Premieres of original choreography by Houston Thomas and ABT dancer Madison Brown; works by Yannick Lebrun and ABT Principal Dancer James Whiteside; George Balanchine’s Tarantella; Jerome Robbins’s Interplay; Gerald Arpino’s Birthday Variations pas de deux; and the iconic Black Swan pas de deux from Kevin McKenzie’s Swan Lake.
Originally founded as ABT’s Dance Repertory Company in 1970 and re-established in 1995, ABT Studio Company celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. Led by ABT Studio Company Artistic Director Sascha Radetsky, the central mission of ABT Studio Company is to prepare its pre-professional dancers – currently ages 17-22 – for careers at American Ballet Theatre or other leading ballet companies worldwide. Nearly 85% of current American Ballet Theatre dancers are alumni of ABT Studio Company, including 16 Principal Dancers and 8 Soloists. Each season, ABT Studio Company commissions new works from emerging and established choreographers and engages the broadest possible ballet audience by performing varied repertory in a range of venues around the globe. ABT Studio Company’s 2024-2025 season includes performances in 19 cities around the United States and will conclude with two performances in London on June 10-11 as part of The Royal Ballet and Opera’s Next Generation Festival.
ABT Studio Company dancers performing in Spring Moves are Max Barker, Maximilian Catazaro, YeonSeo Choi, Elijah Geolina, Ptolemy Gidney, Daniel Guzmán, Paloma Livellara, Kayla Mak, Aaron Marquez, Viktoria Papakalodouka, Sooha Park, and Natalie Steele.
ABT Studio Company performances at NYU Skirball include New York City Premieres of the following ABT Studio Company commissions:
- U Don’t Know Me by Houston Thomas, with music by Avro Pärt, “explores the intricate dance between first impressions and their often-unseen repercussions,” says Thomas.
- Crimson Flame by ABT dancer Madison Brown, with music by Philip Glass, “embodies the energy, unpredictability, and transformative nature of fire, evoking both its destructive force and its capacity to illuminate,” shares Brown.
The performances will also feature the following World Premiere, also an ABT Studio Company commission: Beyond the Silence by Brady Farrar, with music by Sergei Rachmaninoff, “explores a relationship hanging in the balance,” describes Farrar.
Tickets start at $55, fees included, can be purchased online and at the NYU Skirball box office at 566 LaGuardia Place. Student tickets are $25 and can be purchased with a valid student ID in person at the NYU Skirball box office (566 LaGuardia Place. In-person box office hours are Tuesday-Saturday, 12-6pm, closed most university holidays).
ABOUT AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE
American Ballet Theatre is one of the greatest dance companies in the world. Revered as a national treasure since its founding season in 1940, its mission is to create, present, preserve, and extend the great repertoire of classical dancing for the widest possible audience. Headquartered in New York City, ABT is the only cultural institution of its size and stature to extensively tour, enchanting audiences for eight decades in 50 U.S. states, 45 countries, and over 480 cities worldwide. ABT’s repertoire includes full-length classics from the nineteenth century, the finest works from the early twentieth century, and acclaimed contemporary masterpieces. In 2006, by an act of Congress, ABT was designated America's National Ballet Company®.
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