American Repertory Ballet Press Kit

AMERICAN REPERTORY BALLET

Founded in 1963, American Repertory Ballet (ARB) is a preeminent professional ballet company, presenting classical and contemporary works to engage and inspire audiences. A founding resident company of the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center, ARB features:

A talented roster of 23 artists, hailing from local New Jersey communities, from cities throughout the U.S., and international hometowns in Italy, Japan, Brazil, France, Canada, and elsewhere
A renowned leadership team including Director of Artistic Operations Samantha Dunster, Artist in Residence Ethan Stiefel, and Artistic Associate Gillian Murphy
Centered in New Brunswick and Princeton, New Jersey, accessible to major international airports
A unique, diverse, and acclaimed repertoire made exclusively for its dancers, with production elements designed for touring

Aldeir Monteiro by Harald Schrader Photography

“With no shortness of talent and a desire for the fresh and new, American Repertory Ballet is a gem of a dance company and just a short train ride away from the city.”

The Ballet Herald

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Ethan Stiefel is an internationally recognized artist, educator, and leader in the performing arts. After serving as American Repertory Ballet’s Artistic Director for over three years, he is currently The Nora C. Orphanides Artist in Residence. Stiefel was the Principal Guest Instructor at American Ballet Theatre (ABT) from 2016-2021 and the Artistic Director of the Royal New Zealand Ballet (RNZB) from 2011-2014. Just before being appointed the RNZB’s Artistic Director, he served as Dean of the School of Dance at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) from 2007-2011.

Stiefel began his professional career at age 16 with the New York City Ballet where he quickly rose to the rank of Principal Dancer. He was also a Principal Dancer with Ballett Zürich and joined American Ballet Theatre as a Principal Dancer in 1997.

During his career, Stiefel performed leading roles in all of the full-length classics and danced in an extensive range of shorter works created by the industry’s foremost classical, modern and contemporary choreographers. Read more about Ethan Stiefel here.

“We believe in presenting both modern and diverse voices who are igniting new creations as well as original interpretations of iconic, classical works. Our steadfast pursuit of being uniquely relevant while timeless makes us authentically, and singularly, American Repertory Ballet.”
ETHAN STIEFEL

“Stiefel is US ballet royalty.”

The Guardian

CHOREOGRAPHERS: 2021 to today

American Repertory Ballet is committed to fostering the presentation of diverse makers, movements and modalities in ballet and dance. From representing new works of emerging choreographers to revivals from legendary dancers, ARB brings energy and innovative artistry that enthralls audiences.

Claire Davison began her ballet training at the Boulder Ballet School and attended Boston Ballet School, Pacific Northwest Ballet School, School […]

Johan Kobborg is a choreographer and former Principal Dancer of the Royal Danish Ballet and The Royal Ballet London, and most […]

Ja’ Malik is a choreographer and the newly appointed Artistic Director of Madison Ballet. Noted as a “choreographer to watch“ by […]

Chicago-based choreographer, Stephanie Martinez, moves her audiences along a journey guided by the kinetic momentum of her award-winning works spanning […]

Premiere3Program_2023 Arthur Mitchell (Choreographer, Holberg Suite) was known around the world for creating and sustaining the Dance Theatre of Harlem, […]

Caili Quan is a New York-based choreographer who danced with BalletX from 2013 to 2020. She has created works for BalletX, […]

Meredith Rainey began dancing at 15 in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale. In 1985, he became the first African American dancer […]

Amy Seiwert enjoyed a nineteen-year performing career dancing with the Smuin, Los Angeles Chamber, and Sacramento Ballets. As a dancer […]

Ethan Stiefel is an internationally recognized artist, educator, and leader in the performing arts. After serving as American Repertory Ballet’s […]

Ryoko Tanaka was born and raised in Wakayama Japan, where she began her training. In 2013, she was selected to be […]

“American Repertory Ballet took a giant step in advancing its stature as a commissioning institution for new dance works…”

US1

Current Repertoire

Bewitched

Claire Davison’s Bewitched, set to Ella Fitzgerald’s iconic vocals, is a whimsical, whirlwind romance pas de deux.

“Claire Davison’s Bewitched, is a beguiling duet recalling the deliciousness of a romance that ultimately sours. Set to an Ella Fitzgerald recording of Rodgers and Hart’s “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,” the dance elegantly mixes ballroom and ballet movements in replaying a couple’s time together. We see them partaking in nightlife à la Fred and Ginger, dancing, laughing, joking, and falling in love, before spatting and splitting.” – Community News

Running Time: 7 minutes, 10 seconds

Circadia

Caili Quan’s Circadia was inspired by an eclectic music mix ranging from Boban Markovic Orchestra to Gabriella Smith’s Carrot Revolution. Circadia was also inspired by how the body is affected during sleep. “Sleep gives us a place to recover, but it is also where our minds choose memories to keep. It also allows us space to reminisce and dream,” says Quan.

“A cascade of funky movements; raised shoulders, shimmies, cocky struts, and tiny, demi-pointe shuffles across the stage.” – The Ballet Herald

Running Time: 22 minutes, 45 seconds

Delibes Duet

Delibes Duet is a dazzling classical pas de deux, choreographed by Ethan Stiefel, set to music by Léo Delibes.

“Traditionally, male and female dancers have certain roles to fill. From the attire to how they stand on stage, their expectations are split by gender. Stiefel challenges that expectation. A few bars in, the female dancer stands in a pose more commonly taken by the prince in full-length ballets; one straight leg, toes pointing slightly out and the other leg bent slightly at the knee with the heel tucked against the other foot. It may seem like nothing, but it’s a pose rarely done by a ballerina in pointe shoes and a tutu. The pas de deux, luscious and provocative in its subtle challenges of the status quo, is absolutely refreshing.” – The Ballet Herald

Running Time: 8 minutes, 55 seconds

Giselle

Love. Betrayal. Forgiveness. Co-choreographed by Ethan Stiefel and Johan Kobborg, Giselle is considered one of the most romantic ballets of all time, featuring emotionally powerful and technically stunning performances. Ethan Stiefel and Johan Kobborg’s Giselle is a celebrated and moving production which had its world premiere at the Royal New Zealand Ballet in 2012 and has since toured the globe.

Full Length Ballet | Running Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes | One Intermission

Hindsight

Ryoko Tanaka’s Hindsight was inspired by Salvador Dali’s painting Swans Reflecting Elephants (1937). “When I saw the Dali painting for the first time, it was fascinating to see how two completely different animals were reflecting each other in perfect symmetry. I found it incredibly unique and mysterious,” says Tanaka. “It inspired me to create a piece about two different types of reflections: self-reflection and literal reflection.”

Running Time: 20 minutes, 15 seconds

Holberg Suite

After 50 years, American Repertory Ballet brings Arthur Mitchell’s Holberg Suite back to life, blending and balancing mid-20th century ideas with 21st century sensibilities. Set to music by Edvard Grieg, “ARB’s revival of Holberg Suite is a gift.” – Community News

Running Time: 17 minutes, 15 seconds

if

An expressive solo about love and loss, if was choreographed by Ethan Stiefel to “If I Could Only Fly” by American singer-songwriter and poet Blaze Foley. Stiefel gives each dancer significant leeway to imbue the rhythms of the choreography with their own personal experience. Not a gender-specific work, if could also be performed by a male dancer.

Running Time: 4 minutes, 30 seconds

Intrare Forma

Meredith Rainey’s Intrare Forma was created on American Repertory Ballet in the fall of 2023 and features a brand-new score written for a string octet by composer Miranda Scripp.

Eight dancers perform in a trio, a quartet, a duet, and finally as an ensemble in “a kaleidoscope of movement into and out of a variety of structural forms, based on the forms” of the musical composition. – Critical Dance

Running Time: 19 minutes, 45 seconds

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a one-act ballet conceived and choreographed by Ethan Stiefel. Set to Felix Mendelssohn’s iconic score, with additional music arranged by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, this enchanting production will transport audiences to a fantastical forest filled with fairies, mischief and romance, joy, and love. Stiefel’s visionary interpretation of this beloved comic masterpiece, featuring sets and costumes by an award-winning design team, casts its spell on audiences of all ages.

One Act | Running Time: 1 hour, 5 minutes | No Intermission

Moving to Bach

Ja’ Malik’s Moving to Bach is set to Bach’s Sonata for Violin Solo No.1. This work for five dancers creates an ever-evolving world of exhilarating physicality in both direct relation and counter-relation to the rhythmically serene and sometimes explosive score.

“Malik’s work is a lucid, refined piece.” – The Ballet Herald

Running Time: 18 minutes, 45 seconds

Sight Line

Amy Seiwert’s Sight Line explores the haunting melodies of Romania’s beloved Maria Tânase, which Alexander Balanescu has reimagined for his string quartet. The score transcends a geographical boundary and expresses a profound human experience.

Running Time: 22 minutes, 14 seconds

The Time That Runs Away

In Stephanie Martinez’s new work, The Time That Runs Away, nine dancers morph dreamily through a variety of configurations to six diverse songs and leave the audience teeming with a sense of carpe diem.

“An example of dance art at its finest.” – Critical Dance

Running Time: 13 minutes

Time Within A Time

Claire Davison’s Time Within A Time, inspired by six songs from the legendary band Fleetwood Mac, reflects on recent years and how it might feel to return to a place, such as a theater, studio, workplace – or to each other. It is also a celebration. Fleetwood Mac songs include: “Tusk,” “The Way I Feel,” “Say Goodbye,” “Songbird,” “Albatross,” and “Red Rover.”

Running Time: 21 minutes, 15 seconds

VARIANTS

Ethan Stiefel’s VARIANTS is set to Brahms’ “Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel, Op. 24.” Both the music and choreography consist of a set of twenty-five variations and a concluding fugue.

Running Time: 25 minutes, 59 seconds

Wood Work

Ethan Stiefel’s Wood Work was created for The Washington Ballet in 2019 and is set to the music of the Danish String Quartet. Wood Work inspires a sense of joy and healing through seeking unique and individual paths, while feeling connected to one another, all in a vibrant and virtuosic way. “Stiefel interweaves his quirky movements with standard phrases of classical ballet.” – US1

Running Time: 24 minutes, 10 seconds

World, Interrupted

Created for a digital world premiere in early 2021, Amy Seiwert’s World, Interrupted explores resiliency, hope, exhaustion, disruption – all shared experiences related to the ongoing pandemic. “Danced sans pointe shoes, and bare-legged, on an empty stage, the work is sleekly built out of expressive movements derived, in large part, from pedestrian actions.” – Community News

Running Time: 10 minutes, 15 seconds

CONTACT

For booking information, contact us at [email protected]

Photo credits:

Rosalie O’Connor Photography: Circadia, Giselle, if, Intrare Forma, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Moving to Bach, The Time That Runs Away, and Time Within Time

Kyle Froman Photography: Bewitched, Delibes Duet, Hindsight, Holberg Suite, Sight Line, and VARIANTS

Eduardo Patino, NYC: Wood Work, and World, Interrupted

Video editing by Michelle Quiner