Unit III: Ballet and Americana

Ballet 101: Training a Balanchine Dancer
Wednesday, November 13, 7:00 pm–8:30 pm
Kay Mazzo, SAB Chairman of Faculty, and Katrina Killian, SAB's Mae L. Wien Faculty Chair and Children's Division Manager, will present a comprehensive look at the training at SAB, from very young students through advanced levels. This course will also take a look at the sophisticated children’s choreography in George Balanchine's The Nutcracker®, with insights provided by NYCB’s Children’s Ballet Master Dena Abergel and Associate Children's Ballet Master Arch Higgins.

Ballet and Broadway
Wednesday, November 20, 7:00 pm–8:30 pm
New York City Ballet principal dancer Megan Fairchild will speak about her experiences performing on Broadway in On the Town and explore how the Balanchine aesthetic and New York City Ballet repertoire lends itself to this transition between ballet and Broadway. Topics of discussion will also include Jerome Robbins' Broadway-inspired works for New York City Ballet, include Fancy Free and Opus Jazz.

George Balanchine's Representations of Americana in Ballet
Wednesday, December 4, 7:00 pm–8:30 pm
A look at how Balanchine’s love of Americana is represented by some of his most iconic works. Topics of discussion will include Who Cares? and Stars and Stripes. Guest speaker(s) TBA.