Ashley Bouder News

In the Jacob's Pillow-exclusive production Sara Mearns: Beyond Ballet, New York City Ballet principal Sara Mearns performs in multiple cross-genre collaborations in the Doris Duke Theatre, August 14-18.

Vineyard Arts Project (VAP) is pleased to announce its 2019 summer season with six summer residencies culminating in public performances in dance and theater. Welcoming back returning residents Cirio Collective, The Public Theater, and The Ashley Bouder Project, VAP is excited to present BalletCollective, Emily Kikta and Peter Walker, and Gemma Bond for their first residencies.

New York City Ballet (NYCB) has gone through some changes in the past year. In an interview with Jonathan Stafford, Artistic Director, and Wendy Whelan, Associate Artistic Director, Whelan said, 'Change is hard, but change is natural. It's not always easy, but it is informative. And ultimately, it's healthy. It's part of life.'

For the first time in the history of the Prix Benois De La Danse International Ballet Competition there will be two representatives from South Africa at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow: South African International Ballet Competition (SAIBC) Founder Dirk Badenhorst takes his place as the first ever South African jury member, and Soweto-born dancer Andile Ndlovu (pictured), now USA based, will perform in the prestigious event gala on 22 May as one of this year's 27 nominees for the Benois de la Danse award as Best Male Dancer for his role as 'Mercutio' in Washington Ballet's Romeo and Juliet.

This past year, while attending an extraordinary program at Paris's Opéra Garnier which featured the Paris Opera Ballet tackling, among other works, Pina Bausch's Rite of Spring, I wondered to myself, 'Why is New York still the house of Balanchine?' Sure, it could be argued other choreographers have made their mark on the company, from Robbins to Wheeldon to Peck, but the basic machinery of the pieces and their executions is consistently Balanchine in a way that Paris isn't Nureyev. Lincoln Center is nearly as synonymous with Balanchine as Bayreuth is with Wagner. Happily, this past Tuesday's four-part 'All Balanchine' program was an excellent justification for the company's conservation of the choreographer's composition and indelible flair.

Now celebrating the 24th anniversary in Houston and the 27th season since its inception in Brussels, Belgium, Dance Salad Festival promises another gathering of world-class performers. Famous in their own countries, classical and contemporary dancers share the Dance Salad Festival stage to form a mix of movement and compelling choreography.

National Dance Institute (NDI), the non-profit arts education organization founded in 1976 by legendary New York City Ballet principal dancer Jacques d'Amboise, hosted its 43rd Annual Gala at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in New York City. The annual event, which is NDI's largest fundraising event of the year, annually raises $1.5 million with all proceeds benefitting NDI's award-winning arts education programs.

The new artistic director and co-director of the New York City Ballet looked a little nervous Tuesday as they awkwardly welcomed the Kennedy Center audience to their annual week-long residency.

Jacob's Pillow announces that internationally sought-after Colombian-Belgian choreographer Annabelle Lopez Ochoa is the recipient of the 2019 Jacob's Pillow Dance Award.

Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet and Ballet Academy East schools announces their second annual Choreographic Exchange performance series to happen June 9 in New York City and June 20 in Pennsylvania.

The wait is finally over!!! An artistic director for New York City Ballet has been named. Or should I say, two artistic directors?

In the history of classical ballet, it's hard to find a pair more perfect than Balanchine and Tchaikovsky. Balanchine's choreographic style, defined by quirky syncopations and dramatic port de bras, punctuates the longing percussions of Tchaikovsky's scores. The exchange of movement and music is a call and response; a mutual muse that appears when beckoned. This is the best way to describe New York City Ballet's artistry on the evening of January 29, 2018. As the dancers took the stage for three Balanchine classics, you could feel both the tradition of precedent and excitement of modernity in the air.

This January, NYC-ARTS will highlight trailblazing women in the arts, all of whom are celebrated for taking risks and bringing their respective crafts to new heights. 

October 31, Halloween. I was walking to City Center for the opening of 'Balanchine: The City Center Years.' But then I began thinking of Stephen Sondheim's 'Follies.' You must all know the musical. Everyone returns for a reunion, only to be met with ghosts and remembrances of their past lives. After all, City Center is where New York City Ballet began in 1948. I wondered who I would encounter? I saw Allegra Kent. I think I saw two other members of the company who danced on New York City Ballet's opening night 70 years ago? But perhaps I'd encounter some of the other principal dancers of that time: Maria Tallchief on the stairs? Or Tanaquil Le Clercq at the bar? Or Frank Hobi? Francisco Moncion? Nicholas Magallenes? Yvonne Mounsey? Diana Adams?

An admission. I didn't go to the New York City Ballet fashion gala. Why? Because I didn't care. The New York City Ballet is probably the only company in the world that never had to pander to an audience seeking couture thrills, at least when Balanchine was alive. I know that's changed and the company has to bring in the bucks, but when the draw seems to be clothes and not choreography, it gets me thinking. What's in store for us?

As one of five troupes showcased during the 2018 Ballet Festival at the Joyce in NYC, BalletX proved once again that its reputation as Philadelphia's premier contemporary ballet company is well deserved. I praised BalletX back in August of 2016 and I was pleased to see that on June 30th 2018, the caliber of the choreography and the dancing continues to be first rate.

The Kennedy Center, in partnership with the Dizzy Feet Foundation and Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), invites everyone to celebrate the art of dance and joy of movement as the Center hosts the East Coast's chapter of the annual National Dance Day on Saturday, July 28, 2018, from2:00 to 10:30 p.m.