Skylar Brandt

Photo: Taylor Brandt.

Skylar Brandt was born in Purchase, New York and began her training at age six with teachers Diana White and Christian Claessens at Scarsdale Ballet Studio. She also studied with Valentina Kozlova, Fabrice Herrault, Susan Jaffe, Irina Dvorovenko, and Maxim Beloserkovsky. She attended the American Ballet Theatre Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School from 2005-2009 under the direction of Franco De Vita. Brandt spent five summers at ABT’s New York Summer Intensive, was a National Training Scholar from 2006-2009 and also received the Bender Foundation Scholarship in 2009.  Brandt was a silver medalist at Youth America Grand Prix in 2004 and 2008.

Brandt joined ABT II (now ABT Studio Company) in 2009, became an apprentice with the main Company in November 2010, and joined the corps de ballet in June 2011. She was appointed a Soloist in August 2015 and a Principal Dancer in September 2020. Her roles with the Company include Polyhymnia in Apollo, Gamzatti in La Bayadére, Medora in Le Corsaire, Lycenion in Daphnis and Chloe, Kitri in Don Quixote, Lead Maiden in Firebird, Giselle in Giselle, Golden Cockerel in The Golden Cockerel, Young Girl in The Green Table, Columbine in Harlequinade, Young Jane in Jane Eyre, The Leaves Are Fading pas de deux, Tita and Gertrudis in Like Water for Chocolate, Clara, the Princess in Alexei Ratmansky’s The Nutcracker, Olga in Onegin, Younger Sister in Pillar of Fire, the Rose Adagio and Princess Florine in Ratmansky’s The Sleeping Beauty, Odette/Odile in Swan Lake, Princess Praline in Whipped Cream, and leading roles in AFTERITE, Ballet Imperial, The Brahms-Haydn Variations, Piano Concerto No. 1, Symphonic Variations, Theme and Variations, Thirteen Diversions, Bach Partita, Drink to Me Only With Thine Eyes, Gong, In the Upper Room, Raymonda Divertissements, and Sinfonietta.

She created a Consort in A Gathering of Ghosts, The Swallow in The Seasons, the Fairy Canari qui chante (Canary) in Ratmansky’s The Sleeping Beauty, leading roles in Her Notes and Single Eye, and featured roles in AfterEffect, After You, Bernstein in a Bubble, and Praedicere.

Brandt was awarded a 2013 Princess Grace Foundation-USA Dance Fellowship.  That same year, she was featured in the film Ballet’s Greatest Hits. In 2018, Brandt was the recipient of an unprecedented Special Jury Award for her performances on the Russian television show “Big Ballet.” In 2022, Brandt was named to the Forbes “30 Under 30” list of influential leaders and entrepreneurs.

ABT is grateful to Angela and James Ho for supporting the Dancer Fund in honor of Skylar Brandt.