Season to Include New Works by Aszure Barton,
Benjamin Millepied and Alexei Ratmansky

American Ballet Theatre will present three premieres in its first-ever performances at Avery Fisher Hall, October 7-10, 2009, it was announced today by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.

Choreographers Aszure Barton, Benjamin Millepied and Alexei Ratmansky will present new works during six performances at Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall. All three works will be given their New York City premieres at the Opening Night Gala performance on Wednesday, October 7 at 6:30pm. The works will receive their World Premieres during ABT’s engagement at the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College, Annandale-On-Hudson, New York, October 2-4, 2009. ABT’s World Premiere works have been generously supported through an endowed gift from The Toni and Martin Sosnoff New Works Fund.

Performances at Avery Fisher Hall will also include Jerome Robbins’ Other Dances and Clark Tippet’s Some Assembly Required on alternating programs.

Aszure Barton will present a new work set to the music of Maurice Ravel. Barton, who previously created Barbara for ABT II, was named the Altria/ABT Choreography Fellow for 2008. She is the Resident Choreographer for Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal and has been an Artist-in-Residence at the Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC) since 2005.

Benjamin Millepied’s new work will be set to music by David Lang. The premiere at Avery Fisher Hall marks Millepied’s second work for American Ballet Theatre. Millepied is a principal dancer with New York City Ballet. His previous work for ABT, From Here On Out, premiered at New York City Center in 2007. Additional support for Benjamin Millepied’s new work has been generously provided by Cosby W.
and Timothy M. George. Millepied’s new work is generously sponsored by Michele and Steve Pesner.

Alexei Ratmansky will premiere a new work set to Keyboard Sonatas by Domenico Scarlatti. The former Artistic Director of the Bolshoi Ballet, Ratmansky was named ABT’s Artist in Residence in January 2009. Ratmansky’s new work is his second for ABT; he previously choreographed On the Dnieper for ABT in June 2009. Additional support for Alexei Ratmansky’s new work has been generously provided by Leila and Mickey Straus.

Jerome Robbins’ Other Dances, set to music by Frederic Chopin, will be presented Thursday evening, October 8 at 7:30pm, Friday evening, October 9 at 8pm and Saturday matinee, October 10 at 2pm. Other Dances, a plotless, classical character pas de deux, set to a waltz and four mazurkas by Chopin, was created by Robbins for a gala evening for the Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center at the Metropolitan Opera House on May 9, 1976. It received its Company Premiere at the Metropolitan Opera House on June 22, 1976. Other Dances will be staged for ABT by Isabel Guerin. The ballet was last performed by ABT in 2006.

Clark Tippet’s Some Assembly Required is scheduled for performances Friday matinee, October 9 at 2pm, Friday evening, October 9 at 8pm and Saturday evening, October 10 at 8pm. Set to music by William Bolcolm, Some Assembly Required received its World Premiere by American Ballet Theatre on April 14, 1989 at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D. C., danced by Amanda McKerrow and John Gardner. McKerrow and Gardner will stage the ballet for ABT. Some Assembly Required was last performed by ABT in 1997.

Superfund Asset Management, Inc. is the sponsor of American Ballet Theatre’s Fall Gala at Avery Fisher Hall. Saks Fifth Avenue is the Leading Corporate Sponsor of American Ballet Theatre’s Costume Fund. J.P. Morgan is the Official Sponsor of Make a Ballet. American Airlines is the Official Airline of American Ballet Theatre. Northern Trust is the leading underwriter of the Jacqueline Kennedy Onnasis School at American Ballet Theatre. The 2009 Fall Season is also made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. ABT acknowledges The Toni and Martin Sosnoff New Works Fund for its generous support of the 2009 Avery Fisher Hall season.

Tickets for American Ballet Theatre’s Fall season at Avery Fisher Hall, priced $20-$135, are on sale beginning July 20 at Avery Fisher Hall’s box office or by calling 212-721-6500. Avery Fisher Hall is located at the northern end of the Lincoln Center Plaza, at the corner of Broadway and 65th Street.

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