February 28, 2024
From Center Stage to Central New Jersey
Ethan Stiefel
Artistic Director, American Repertory Ballet
From Center Stage to Central New Jersey
Ethan Stiefel
Artistic Director, American Repertory Ballet
Introducer: Nancy Becker/Speaker: Ethan Stiefel
Minutes of the 20th Meeting of the 82nd Year
John Cotton, Old Guard president, called the meeting to order and presided. Frances Slade led the invocation. Ralph Widner read the minutes of the prior meeting. The attendance at Princeton University Friend Center was 85. There were five guests: Cheryl Whitney (guest of Kathryn Trenner), Nancy Gillespie (guest of Ruth Miller), Peter Reczek (guest of Julie Elward-Berry), Sue Howard (guest of George Harvey), and Sharon White (guest of Russ White). John pointed out that thumb drives and emeritus badges were available after the meeting. He also noted that the next meeting on March 6, with a 9:30 AM hospitality start, would initiate the Old Guard return to Springdale Golf Club, with a reminder about considering all the parking options (due to limited parking in the club parking lot).
Nancy Becker introduced the speaker, Ethan Stiefel, artistic director of the American Repertory Ballet (ARB) since 2021. Ethan is one of the best-known male dancers of his generation, beginning at the New York City Ballet in 1989 at age 16, and moving to American Ballet Theater in 1997, rising to principal dancer. As a principal dancer he made multiple guest appearances throughout the world. He retired from the stage in 2012, but continued his dance career in coaching, teaching, and choreography with multiple organizations. During this period, he was artistic director of the Royal New Zealand Ballet, 2011-2014, and starred in the dance musical film Center Stage (2000).
Ethan introduced us to the ARB, describing its four current components: Princeton Ballet School (founded in 1954), Princeton Ballet Company (founded in 1963), Princeton Ballet DANCE POWER program, which works with third grade students in New Brunswick schools, and the new Dance for Parkinson’s program. ARB teaches 200 classes per week, enrolls 500+ students, including adults, and stages a Nutcracker ballet at the holidays involving 150 dance students.
Ethan then reviewed his own path from a nine-year-old Wisconsin grade school student who dreamed of becoming a Green Bay Packer to an accomplished world-renowned dancer, choreographer and artistic director. During this retrospective, he shared several film clips of his ethereal and energetic performances. What was conspicuous in his description of all his guest ballet performances domestically and throughout the western world was his innate curiosity and desire for personal and professional growth and to experience other cultures.
Ethan is actively involved with choreography in his artistic directorship role at ARB, setting modern works as well original interpretations of iconic classics, for his twenty-two-member company. He described a comic “Bier Halle” work, an updated Midsummer Night’s Dream work and a planned “Spirit of the Highlands” based on the classic Les Sylphides.
Personally, he explained his motivation for taking for the artistic directorship role of the Royal New Zealand Ballet, due to his New Zealand-born maternal grandmother, originally of Scottish (Edinburg) heritage. He shared his marriage to ballet dancer Gillian Murphy, who still dances with ARB and ABT, and his young son, which formed the basis for his commitment to Princeton and New Jersey and ARB.
In the Q&A portion, Ethan shared the dancer’s secret of “spotting” to avoid dizziness while pirouetting (spinning). He discussed distinctive ballet aesthetics for individual companies around the world; he described the U.S. style as “Broadway theater.” And he described some of his inspirations for ballets that he choreographs, which include updated versions of the classics, as well as more streamlined contemporary offerings.
Respectfully submitted,
Julianne Elward-Berry
Nancy Becker introduced the speaker, Ethan Stiefel, artistic director of the American Repertory Ballet (ARB) since 2021. Ethan is one of the best-known male dancers of his generation, beginning at the New York City Ballet in 1989 at age 16, and moving to American Ballet Theater in 1997, rising to principal dancer. As a principal dancer he made multiple guest appearances throughout the world. He retired from the stage in 2012, but continued his dance career in coaching, teaching, and choreography with multiple organizations. During this period, he was artistic director of the Royal New Zealand Ballet, 2011-2014, and starred in the dance musical film Center Stage (2000).
Ethan introduced us to the ARB, describing its four current components: Princeton Ballet School (founded in 1954), Princeton Ballet Company (founded in 1963), Princeton Ballet DANCE POWER program, which works with third grade students in New Brunswick schools, and the new Dance for Parkinson’s program. ARB teaches 200 classes per week, enrolls 500+ students, including adults, and stages a Nutcracker ballet at the holidays involving 150 dance students.
Ethan then reviewed his own path from a nine-year-old Wisconsin grade school student who dreamed of becoming a Green Bay Packer to an accomplished world-renowned dancer, choreographer and artistic director. During this retrospective, he shared several film clips of his ethereal and energetic performances. What was conspicuous in his description of all his guest ballet performances domestically and throughout the western world was his innate curiosity and desire for personal and professional growth and to experience other cultures.
Ethan is actively involved with choreography in his artistic directorship role at ARB, setting modern works as well original interpretations of iconic classics, for his twenty-two-member company. He described a comic “Bier Halle” work, an updated Midsummer Night’s Dream work and a planned “Spirit of the Highlands” based on the classic Les Sylphides.
Personally, he explained his motivation for taking for the artistic directorship role of the Royal New Zealand Ballet, due to his New Zealand-born maternal grandmother, originally of Scottish (Edinburg) heritage. He shared his marriage to ballet dancer Gillian Murphy, who still dances with ARB and ABT, and his young son, which formed the basis for his commitment to Princeton and New Jersey and ARB.
In the Q&A portion, Ethan shared the dancer’s secret of “spotting” to avoid dizziness while pirouetting (spinning). He discussed distinctive ballet aesthetics for individual companies around the world; he described the U.S. style as “Broadway theater.” And he described some of his inspirations for ballets that he choreographs, which include updated versions of the classics, as well as more streamlined contemporary offerings.
Respectfully submitted,
Julianne Elward-Berry