NYCB's Sara Mearns Departs The Joyce's Ballet Festival Due to Illness

Linda Shelton, Executive Director of The Joyce Theater Foundation, announced today that due to altitude sickness that also caused her to cancel scheduled performances at the recent Vail International Dance Festival, Sara Mearns will be unable to appear in the August 13 and 14 performances of The Joyce's current Ballet Festival. American Ballet Theatre dancer Stephanie Williams will take her place in the work, Partita No. 2 in C Minor, by choreographer Emery LeCrone.

In announcing the casting change, Ms. Shelton said, "I share everybody's disappointment in the news that Sara is unable to perform this week, but her recovery is most important, and all of us at The Joyce wish her well as she regains her strength."

Born in Newcastle, Australia, Stephanie Williams began training at the age of eight at the Marie Walton-Mahon Dance Academy before relocating to Melbourne to complete her training with The Australian Ballet School. She then joined The Australian Ballet in 2007 as a member of the corps de ballet and was promoted to coryphée. In 2009, Williams was guest artist with Christopher Wheeldon's Morphoses. She worked with Wayne McGregor, creating a role in Dyad 1929 and becoming the youngest ever winner of The Australian Telstra Ballet Dancer of the Year Award. In August 2011, Williams spent six months with Het Nationale Ballet in Amsterdam before joining ABT as a member of the corps de ballet in January 2012.

The Joyce Theater's two-week long Ballet Festival kicked off on August 4 with Joshua Beamish/MOVE: the company, followed by Chamber Dance Project, dancers & musicians and The Ashley Bouder Project. This Festival's remaining companies and performances are as follows:

BalletX: August 12 at 7:30pm

Emery LeCrone: August 13-14 at 8pm

Amy Seiwert's Imagery: August 15 at 8pm; August 16 at 2pm

Tickets range in price from $10 - $39 (subject to change) and can be purchased by calling JoyceCharge at 212-242-0800 or online at joyce.org. The Joyce Theater is located at 175 Eighth Avenue at West 19th Street.

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