The 41st Annual Bessie Awards Presented at Dixon Place

The 41st Annual Bessie Awards, celebrating both 2024 and 2025 award receipients, were announced on January 20, 2026 at Dixon Place, 161A Chrystie Street, New York. Dixo. The 2024 & 2025 Bessie Awards Ceremony was co-produced by Sangeeta Ghosh Yesley and Charles Vincent Burwell, and the event was hosted by Nicky Paraiso and Patricia Hoffbauer.

The evening, and mission of the awards, honors excellence and creativity within New York City's dance community. Opening the evening in music, composer and performer Jonathan Howard Katz, presented his own composition -Ipseities: No. 4 (2020) and Ipseities: No. 24 (2021). 

The Bessie Awards were presented to artists for the categories including Outstanding Choreographer/creator, Performer, Sound Design or Music Composition, Visual Design, Outstanding Revival, and Breakout Choreographer, reflecting and honoring an artist who had made distinctive leaps in their artistic career. Additional awards are given for the Lifetime Achievement award and Outstanding Service to the Field of Dance. 

The 2024 New York Dance and Performance Award recipients were distributed first, distinguishing Dyane Harvey-Salaam as the recipient of 2024 Lifetime Achievement in Dance Award and Ballet Tech as the recipient of Outstanding Service to the Field of Dance Award.

The remaining awards were presented as follows: Outstanding Visual Design to Reid Bartelme, Harriet Jung, and Andrew Jordan for JEUX + A CHILD'S TALE, Christopher Williams/Baryshnikov Arts Center, Outstanding Sound Design or Musical Composition to yuniya edi kwon, Haruko Crow Nishimura, Joshua Kohl of Degenerate Art Ensemble for Boy mother/faceless bloom, Juni On Set at New York Live Arts, Outstanding Revival to The Rite of Spring (1975) by Pina Bausch; Restaged by Josephine Ann Endicott, Jorge Puerta Armenta and Clémentine Deluy and a specially assembled company of 34 dancers from 14 African countries for The Pina Bausch Foundation, École des Sables & Sadler's Wells at Park Avenue Armory, Outstanding Performer to Abdiel at Fort Greene Park, Paul Hamilton for Ceremonia, Edisa Weeks for 3 Rites: Liberty, Delirious Dances, and The Rite of Spring Ensemble at Park Avenue Armory. Outstanding breakout choreographer was awarded to Baye & Asa, Outstanding Choreographer/Creator was awarded to Hyejin Jeong, Sung Hoon Kim, Jaeduk Kim for One Dance at David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center and Nia Love for UNDERcurrents at Harlem Stage, Shamel Pitts for Touch of RED at New York Live Arts, and Wanjiru Kamuyu for A Disguised Welcome...aka An Immigrant's Story at The Chocolate Factory Theater. 

The 2025 New York Dance and Performance Award recipients and citations were distributed second, after a breif intermission and performance of Katz's second piano composition. The 2025 Lifetime Achievement in Dance Award was presented to Garth Fagan, and Outstanding Service to the Field of Dance Award given to Gina Gibney of Gibney Dance.

The remaining 2025 awards were presented as follows: Outstanding Visual Design to Clifton Taylor for Many Angels for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater at New York City Center, Outstanding Sound Design or Musical Composition to Angie Pittman, Cody Jensen for Black Life Chord Changes at Out-Front! Festival, Oustanding Revival to Grace (1999) Ronald K. Brown for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater at New York City Center, Outstanding Performer to Jacquelin Harris of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Cast of CATS: The Jellicle Ball at Perelman Performing Arts Center, Jake Roxander for Onegin for American Ballet Theater at Metropolitan Opera House, and House of Juicy + House of Telfar for Performance as a House. Outstanding Breakout Choreographer was awarded to Amy Hall Garner and Outstanding Choreographer/Creator was awarded to Fredrick Earl Mosley for Unleashed at Ailey Citigroup Theater, Lar Lubovitch for Many Angels at City Center, Omari Wiles and Arturo Lyons for CATS: The Jellicle Ball, and Yoko Murakami for Blink at Triskelion Arts. 

For more information about The Bessies, please visit www.bessies.org.