Gibney Company Appoints Kyle Bukhari as General Manager

Gibney Company has announced the appointment of Kyle Bukhari as General Manager, effective January 6, 2026. In this executive leadership role, Bukhari will partner with Founder, Artistic Director, and CEO Gina Gibney to implement the Company's five-year Growth and Refinement Plan and steward its next chapter of artistic expansion, touring, and institutional sustainability.

As General Manager, Bukhari will oversee the administrative direction of Gibney Company, in close collaboration with Company Director Gilbert T Small II, supervising its full-time administrative team and part-time technical staff while collaborating closely with Advancement, Marketing, Finance, and Operations across the organization. His portfolio will include strategic planning, financial management, day-to-day operations, and cultivating partnerships and earned-revenue opportunities that advance Gibney's mission and values.

Bukhari brings more than a decade of leadership experience in non-profit finance, higher education, and the performing arts. He joins Gibney from Columbia University's Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology, where he most recently served as Director of Academic Administration and Finance. During his tenure, he managed an over $8 million annual operating budget and a $15 million multi-year grant portfolio, increased grant application success rates by over 40%, and drove a more than 25% increase in annual grant revenue through strengthened post-award operations. He led a 13-member team, shepherded international research initiatives, and developed sustainable financial models that preserved program growth through significant reductions in reserves.

A former dancer with the Joffrey Ballet New York and the Zurich Ballet, Bukhari is also a Fulbright Fellow in Dance and a published writer in dance history and philosophy, with work appearing in the Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Ballet and the International Journal of Screendance. He has choreographed for the Saarländisches Staatstheater under Marguerite Donlon, Augsburg Ballet, and the Zurich Opera, toured internationally, and was awarded "Best German Dance Solo" in Leipzig in 1998. In New York, he has produced and moderated programs for the Whitney Museum, Baryshnikov Arts Center, Movement Research at Judson, New York Live Arts, El Museo del Barrio, and the Museum of the City of New York, and recently co-produced and moderated the U.S. premiere of Becoming Giulia at Metrograph Theater.

Bukhari earned his B.A. in Anthropology from Columbia University (Phi Beta Kappa) and an M.A. with distinction in Dance Studies from Roehampton University, London. He has presented his research internationally and was Visiting Lecturer in the MFA program in Dance at Sarah Lawrence College from 2016-2020.

"Joining Gibney is a tremendous privilege and an opportunity to advance its mission to empower artists, innovate contemporary dance creation, and further equity through the art of dance," said Bukhari. "I look forward to collaborating with Gina and Gilbert to fortify sustainable systems and programs, and to help bring Gibney Company into its next phase of artistic influence and social impact."

"Kyle brings a rare combination of rigorous financial and operational expertise with a lived artistic practice," adds Gina Gibney, Founder, Artistic Director, and CEO. "His leadership will be essential as we refine the Company's model, deepen touring and partnerships, and continue to use dance as a powerful vehicle for connection and social change."

"What excites me most about welcoming Kyle is his instinct to lead with the needs of artists and then build structures around that vision," notes Company Director Gilbert T Small II. "His experience across both the studio and the administrative landscape makes him uniquely equipped to guide this moment of growth. I look forward to our collaboration as we shape Gibney's future together."