Wendy Whelan News

New York City Ballet Principal Dancer Wendy Whelan will bid farewell to New York City Ballet with a special one-time-only performance on Saturday, October 18 at 8 p.m. For the occasion, two of the dance world's most acclaimed choreographers, Alexei Ratmansky and Christopher Wheeldon, will collaborate on a world premiere piece d'occasion for Whelan.

On September 21st 2014 at Lincoln Center, Wendy Whelan and Craig Hall delivered a soul stirring al fresco performance of the pas de deux from Christopher Wheeldon's 'After the Rain' to the haunting music of Arvo Part. The performance by the pair of New York City Ballet dancers was one of the offerings during the evening portion of the free, day-long Buddhist ceremony called the Shinnyo Lantern Floating for Peace.

A Jacob's Pillow Dance Award recipient, MacArthur “Genius” Fellow, and critically lauded choreographer who pairs diverse movement styles with issues of social and historical significance, Kyle Abraham brings his newest work to MASS MoCA October 18 and 19 in a co-presentation with Jacob's Pillow, made possible by the Irene Hunter Fund for Dance. The Watershed is an evening-length work in Abraham's signature blend of classical form, postmodern invention, and urban influences, performed by Abraham and his accomplished company, Abraham.In.Motion. Performances will be held at MASS MoCA's Hunter Center, in North Adams, Mass.

New York City Center's 11th annual Fall for Dance Festival will feature free performances in Central Park and 24 acclaimed dance companies and artists from around the world, in six unique programs in September and October 2014. In keeping with the Festival's commitment to make dance accessible to everyone, the Festival will kick off with two FREE evenings of dance at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, in association with The Public Theater, today and tomorrow, September 12 and 13 (rain date, September 14) and will continue at City Center from October 8 - October 19 with all tickets at $15. The Festival's many free pre-show events will include dance lessons and panels by choreographers, artists and dance educators. Tickets will go on sale Sunday, September 14 at 11 a.m.

A Jacob's Pillow Dance Award recipient, MacArthur “Genius” Fellow, and critically lauded choreographer who pairs diverse movement styles with issues of social and historical significance, Kyle Abraham brings his newest work to MASS MoCA October 18 and 19 in a co-presentation with Jacob's Pillow, made possible by the Irene Hunter Fund for Dance. The Watershed is an evening-length work in Abraham's signature blend of classical form, postmodern invention, and urban influences, performed by Abraham and his accomplished company, Abraham.In.Motion. Performances will be held at MASS MoCA's Hunter Center, in North Adams, Mass.

New York City Center's 2014-15 season features an exciting lineup of dance and musical theater that begins with the 11th season of City Center's acclaimed Fall for Dance Festival. The Festival features 24 acclaimed dance companies and artists from around the world, and will kick off in September with two free dance performances at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park in association with The Public Theater, followed by five unique programs at City Center in October. The Band Wagon, an Encores! Special Event starring Brian Stokes Mitchell, follows in November, and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, City Center's Principal Dance Company, returns for a month-long engagement in December.

New York City Center's 11th annual Fall for Dance Festival will feature free performances in Central Park and 24 acclaimed dance companies and artists from around the world, in six unique programs in September and October 2014.

The New York Dance and Performance Awards (The Bessies), NYC's premier dance awards honoring outstanding creative work in the field, celebrates a milestone 30th anniversary this year. Today, the 36 nominees for the 2013-14 season were announced at a press conference by members of The Bessies Selection Committee. The nominations (listed below) were selected by an independent committee of 40 dance industry professionals. Produced in partnership with Dance/NYC, Bessie Award categories include Outstanding Performer, Outstanding Production, Outstanding Visual Design, Outstanding Music Composition or Sound Design and Outstanding Revival.

New York Live Arts today announced further programming details for the suite of all-new world premiere works created by 2012-2014 Resident Commissioned Artist(RCA) Kyle Abraham, including a fourth, previously unannounced ensemble work. Known for creating “voluptuous movement phrases with touches of dance-theater” (The New York Times) Abraham and his company, Abraham.In.Motion, will present four works-one evening-length, two ensemble works and one trio-over two programs titled The Watershed and When the Wolves Came In at New York Live Arts from September 23 through 27 and September 30 through October 4, 2014. Exploring two totemic triumphs in the international history of the civil rights, the 150 year anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation and the 20 year anniversary of the abolishment of apartheid in South Africa, the works feature visual design by acclaimed conceptual artist Glenn Ligon and original music performed live by world renowned jazz artist Robert Glasper, accompanied by two musicians and a vocalist.

Daniel Ulbricht/BALLET 2014 offers an exclusive opportunity for audiences to experience some of today's most remarkable ballet dancers in the intimate Ted Shawn Theatre at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, July 16-20. New York City Ballet Principal Dancer Daniel Ulbricht directs and performs with a select ensemble of top stars including Tyler Angle, Craig Hall, Robert Fairchild, Russell Janzen, Emily Kikta, Rebecca Krohn, Tiler Peck, Georgina Pazcoguin, and Teresa Reichlen. The program is equally impressive, including Christopher Wheeldon's Liturgy, danced to Arvo Pärt's ”Fratres;” Two Hearts, a collaboration between Benjamin Millepied and composer Nico Muhly; Furiant, created by NYCB Soloist Justin Peck; Sunshine, a solo for Ulbricht by Larry Keigwin; the world premiere of Opus 19. Andante, a duet by critically acclaimed young choreographer Emery LeCrone; and the classic Fancy Free, the first ballet created by Jerome Robbins and Leonard Bernstein in 1944, which subsequently inspired the full-length musical On the Town. Cast subject to change.

Ballet Academy East has announced that Wendy Whelan will join the Pre-Professional Division Faculty. Ms. Whalen's tenure will begin with Ballet Academy East's Summer Intensive from August 18-29 and will continue through the school year, which begins on September 16, 2014. Ms. Whalen will primarily teach the upper level students of the Pre-Professional Division.

Daniel Ulbricht/BALLET 2014 offers an exclusive opportunity for audiences to experience some of today's most remarkable ballet dancers in the intimate Ted Shawn Theatre at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, July 16-20. New York City Ballet Principal Dancer Daniel Ulbricht directs and performs with a select ensemble of top stars including Tyler Angle, Craig Hall, Robert Fairchild, Russell Janzen, Emily Kikta, Rebecca Krohn, Tiler Peck, Georgina Pazcoguin, and Teresa Reichlen.

Daniel Ulbricht/BALLET 2014 offers an exclusive opportunity for audiences to experience some of today's most remarkable ballet dancers in the intimate Ted Shawn Theatre at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, July 16-20. New York City Ballet Principal Dancer Daniel Ulbricht directs and performs with a select ensemble of top stars including Tyler Angle, Craig Hall, Robert Fairchild, Russell Janzen, Emily Kikta, Rebecca Krohn, Tiler Peck, Georgina Pazcoguin, and Teresa Reichlen. The program is equally impressive, including Christopher Wheeldon's Liturgy, danced to Arvo Pärt's ”Fratres;” Two Hearts, a collaboration between Benjamin Millepied and composer Nico Muhly; Furiant, created by NYCB Soloist Justin Peck; Sunshine, a solo for Ulbricht by Larry Keigwin; the world premiere of Opus 19. Andante, a duet by critically acclaimed young choreographer Emery LeCrone; and the classic Fancy Free, the first ballet created by Jerome Robbins and Leonard Bernstein in 1944, which subsequently inspired the full-length musical On the Town. Cast subject to change.

Popular contemporary company Hubbard Street Dance Chicago returns to Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival for the first time since 2010, bringing a sensational mixed-bill program. Directed by Glenn Edgerton, the 18-member company performs the dramatic Mediterranean-inspired Gnawa, choreographed by Nacho Duato, and Ji?í Kylián's vivid Falling Angels, a stark all-female work danced to “Drumming” by contemporary composer Steve Reich. The company's performance of Falling Angels earlier this year was called “a gorgeous combination of energetic and hypnotic, a celebration of what the body can do” by Lauren Whalen of Chicago Theater Beat. Hubbard Street Resident Choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo's latest work for the company, The Impossible, is a bold and theatrical work centered around themes of memory, mortality, and the human spirit.

The School of American Ballet's Workshop Performance Benefit 2014 on Tuesday, June 3, 2014 celebrated 50 years of these annual performances and raised nearly $860,000 for scholarships and school programs. The evening began with cocktails at 5:30pm in Juilliard's Morse Hall, followed by the presentation of the Mae L. Wien Award for Outstanding Service to Dena Abergel, SAB faculty member and NYCB Children's Ballet Master, and Wien Awards for Outstanding Promise to Lyrica Blankfein, Christopher Grant, Baily Jones, and Addie Tapp. Scroll down for photos from the event!

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, under the artistic direction of Glenn Edgerton, presents its Summer Series program today, June 5-8, 2014 featuring the 13th world premiere for the company by Resident Choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo, with costumes by Branimira Ivanova, 'Jeff' Award-winning designer of numerous Hubbard Street premieres; and lighting by Michael Korsch, designer for both of Cerrudo's acclaimed works for Hubbard Street's main company in 2012: Little mortal jump and One Thousand Pieces.

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, under the artistic direction of Glenn Edgerton, presents its Summer Series program today, June 5-8, 2014 featuring the 13th world premiere for the company by Resident Choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo, with costumes by Branimira Ivanova, 'Jeff' Award-winning designer of numerous Hubbard Street premieres; and lighting by Michael Korsch, designer for both of Cerrudo's acclaimed works for Hubbard Street's main company in 2012: Little mortal jump and One Thousand Pieces.