Richmond Ballet's Phillip Skaggs to Retire

Longtime company dancer Phillip Skaggs is set to retire from the stage at the end of the 2014-15 season after 16 years with Richmond Ballet. The entire company will celebrate Mr. Skaggs' 16 year career with a special farewell performance of George Balanchine's elegant Liebeslieder Walzer during the work's springtime run, April 14-19 at Richmond Ballet's Studio Theatre. Mr. Skaggs' retirement will mark the departure of the longest-tenured company member currently at dancing with Richmond Ballet.

"Closing in on 16 years, the time finally felt right. I feel so thankful for the opportunity to dance with Richmond Ballet, a company that has become my home," said Mr. Skaggs. "I have been so fortunate to have had the great support of our artistic staff, my friends and my family over the course of my career; it certainly would have been hard to make it in this business for so long without it. For the memories, for the lessons of hard work, for the chance to see the world, for the opportunity to work with fellow artists in pursuit of the same creative ideal, and of course, for the friends whom I will cherish for a lifetime still to come, I'm grateful for everything."

"Malcolm Burn [Ballet Master at Richmond Ballet] used to tell me, 'You have to dance long enough, to get good enough, to enjoy what you do,' and that is a quote that I have always held close," said Mr. Skaggs. "Now, looking into the final act of a 16 year career, I truly understand what this means. While it makes my retirement somewhat bittersweet, of course, I know I can leave this career feeling as though I achieved something great - I will have loved what I did."

"It is hard for me to imagine walking into our studio or theatre and not see Phillip Skaggs ready to dance," added Stoner Winslett, Artistic Director at Richmond Ballet. "After all, he has been with us over half of the life of the Richmond Ballet professional company! It has been a pleasure for me to work with Phillip and see him grow from a new, enthusiastic young professional to a seasoned, mature but still just as enthusiastic, artist. All dancers know from the outset that their performing careers will have an end and I feel so happy for Phillip that he is ready for a new chapter and has been able to make his own choice about timing. His dancing will remain in our hearts and memories forever and I look forward to the many more times this season that his elegant presence will grace our stage."

"Phillip Skaggs is a true gem," said company dancer and longtime partner, Lauren Fagone. "To call him my on stage partner doesn't even come close to describing the powerful and compassionate presence he has been in my life and my career. His warm smile and unaffected gallantry belie great depth, and I've always loved that Phillip invests himself in people, when it can be so easy in this profession to become inwardly focused and independent. His good nature and sincerity make it difficult for him to even realize how deeply his absence will affect, too, the dynamic in the studio."

"I think, when it comes to partnerships, it's good if your partner believes in your talent, but it's richly rewarding when your partner believes in you as a human being too", continued Ms. Fagone. "Phillip possesses this unbelievable ability to instill confidence in his partners, and his thoughtful, reassuring words remind us that we are valuable. Dancing with Phillip has made my heart soar, and I will forever be indebted to him for believing in me."

"It's certainly going to be big change for me and my family, but I am excited for a new creative challenge," continued Mr. Skaggs. "Still, there is so much that I will miss: my friends, working alongside my fellow dancers who are as dedicated to an idea and who are as passionate about a belief as I am. But there's also an element of healthy competition that I am going to miss, that competitive edge that gives you a spark, and certainly that intense physicality that comes with being a professional dancer. Even so, there's a sweetness and a significance in our physicality as dancers that's unseen in most other areas of the professional world, whether that's working with a partner or connecting with your fellow dancers who have become your closest friends. Dancers are true physical beings, and the absence of that contact, that touch, will be an adjustment."

"I know I can't wait for the chance to spend more time with my loving wife, my kids and the rest of my family. I still hope that, in this next life, I am able to find another artistic pursuit that can be inspiring, and that will give me the opportunity to be creative and active. Moreover, I can't wait for the chance to sit in the audience at Richmond Ballet performances and to be able to experience the magic from out in front of the proscenium. There are great things happening here, and that will continue to happen here with this company, and I won't be a stranger."

Mr. Skaggs originally hails from Louisville, Kentucky. After graduating from The Youth Performing Arts School in 1996, he then moved to Connecticut to train with The Nutmeg Ballet. He danced with the Hartford Ballet before accepting a position as a company member with Richmond Ballet in 1999.

In his 16 years with the professional company, Mr. Skaggs has performed a wide range of roles from the company's extensive classical and contemporary repertory. Mr. Skaggs has premiered roles in a variety of works created for Richmond Ballet by choreographers such as Jessica Lang and Ma Cong. Of particular note, Mr. Skaggs originated roles in such successful works as Val Caniparoli's Swipe, which has become a standout piece from the company's international touring program, Made in the USA: Traditions & Innovations, while also becoming a ballet now performed by companies around the world. But from among his many roles, Mr. Skaggs counts Tybalt in Malcolm Burn's Romeo and Juliet, as well as Adam in John Butler's After Eden, and the title role in George Balanchine's Apollo as his most beloved performing experiences.

Mr. Skaggs is married to former company dancer Katherine Lynch Skaggs, who retired from the Richmond Ballet stage in 2007. The two are now the proud parents to two young boys, Louie, and Garrett.

Additional information about Mr. Skaggs' farewell performance is to be released in the spring.

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