News

Your August Roster Roundup: Dancers and Directors on the Move

August 8, 2025

The past few weeks have brought another exciting round of ballet career news—check out the latest farewells, appointments, promotions, and more in your August 2025 roster roundup.

Promotions and Appointments

American Ballet Theatre has promoted Sierra Armstrong, Takumi Miyake, and Jose Sebastian to soloist, effective September 1, 2025.

James Kirby Rogers has been named a principal dancer with Semperoper Dresden.

Birmingham Royal Ballet promoted several dancers: Yu Kurihara to principal; Enrique Bejarano Vidal to first soloist; Ryan Felix, Javier Rojas, and Yuki Sugiura to first artist. Daria Stanciulescu is now a principal character artist. Rory Mackay and Jonathan Payn will continue as principal character artists as well as assume new roles as répétiteurs in the fall. BRB2 alumni Alisa Garkavenko, Tom Hazelby, and Alexandra Manuel have been offered contracts as artists.

Yu does a pique arabesque with her left leg extended and left arm in fifth, holding onto Lachlan with her right hand. She wears a white bodice and romantic tutu. Lachlan holds her hand with his right, his left arm is in fifth position, and his left leg in a tendu back. He wears gray trousers and tights with a white shirt and silver vest. A group of dancers in ornate silver tutus stands in a line in fifth position on stage right. — Lachlan Monaghan and Yu Kurihara in *Cinderella*. Photo by Katja Ogrin, courtesy BRB.

Houston Ballet dancers Eric Best, Aoi Fujiwara, Danbi Kim, and Naazir Muhammad have been promoted to first soloist.

Ballet Idaho celebrates the promotions of Jonathan Harris and Elizabeth Kanning to principal artist. Ian Rotheroe has been promoted to the rank of soloist. Sofia Striegl and Izzy Urbano rise as company artists, and trainee Isabella Knott is an apprentice for the 2025–26 season.

Ballet West announced that Dominic Ballard, Vinicius Lima, and Rylee Ann Rogers are now soloists. Jacob Hancock, Joseph Lynch, Lexi McCloud, Anisa Sinteral, and Loren Walton have been promoted to demi-soloist, and Jaya Dhand, Lund Fuller, Victor Galeana, and Téa Hinchley join the corps from BWII. Former Ballet West Academy student Kyra Stafford will move up to the main company as a corps member.

Cincinnati Ballet promoted Joshua Fisk and Simone Muhammad to the corps de ballet; Nasrullah Abdur-Rahman, Annie Fitzpatrick, Mia Schlosser, and Salomé Tregre have been promoted from apprentice to new dancers. Cincinnati Ballet 2 members Angelina de la Nuez and Nicholas Motley will also join the main company as apprentices.

Richmond Ballet apprentice Josiah Lax has been promoted to company dancer for the 2025–26 season. Studio company members Rika Kinoshita and Chase Marcot have moved up to company apprentice.

Olivia DeAngelo will join The Washington Ballet from its Studio Company for the 2025–26 season.

Ana Zamora has been promoted from the RBC Apprentice Programme to corps de ballet at National Ballet of Canada.

Former BalletMet 2 members Amélie Freeman, Jordan Sheppard, and Claire Wessells have moved up to the main company.

Katie Drozd has been promoted from apprentice to company dancer with Alabama Ballet.

Nevada Ballet Theatre promoted Carmen Rossi and Mallory Sweeney from the second company to apprentice.

Sofiane corrects Emerson in a studio. Both have their right arm extended and head tilted. Sofiane wears a black shirt, pants, and sunglasses. Emerson wears a purple leotard and white practice tutu. — Sofiane Sylve in rehearsal with Emerson Dayton. Photo by Karolina Kuras, courtesy NBoC

Tallahassee Ballet announced that Sarah Genzer and Jessica Skinker have been promoted to demi-soloist.

At Texas Ballet Theater, AvaRose Dillon and Jason McClung have been promoted from apprentice to corps de ballet. Luke Maysonet has been promoted from trainee to corps de ballet. And Alexandria Diemoz has been promoted from trainee to apprentice.

Sofiane Sylve has been appointed artist in residence of National Ballet of Canada. Greta Hodgkinson will become the new apprentice program director.

Recently retired New York City Ballet principal Ashley Bouder has been named executive director of Eastern Connecticut Ballet, a ballet academy in East Lyme, Connecticut.

Harald Uwe Kern is now the director of the School of Ballet San Antonio.

Christopher Marney, London City Ballet’s artistic director, has been named a resident artist at Baryshnikov Arts.

Farewells, New Arrivals, and Guestings

On June 10, four years before its original end date, Demis Volpi’s directorship contract with Hamburg Ballet was terminated in a “mutual agreement” between him and The Supervisory Board of the Hamburg State Opera. Volpi, who faced accusations of cultivating a toxic work environment, held the position for 10 months. Lloyd Riggins, former deputy to John Neumeier; Gigi Hyatt, director of the School of the Hamburg Ballet; and Nicolas Hartmann, Hamburg Ballet managing director, will serve as interim directors.

Longtime American Ballet Theatre corps member Courtney (“Coco”) Lavine took her last bow on July 5 after performing in Christopher Wheeldon’s The Winter’s Tale.

Courtney wears a long, blue dress with ruffled sleeves and an ornate head piece while she does a pique arabesque. Her left arm is raised and she looks toward stage left. Another dancer piques alongside her. — Courtney Lavine in *Swan Lake*. Photo by Gene Schiavone, courtesy ABT.

Ilaria Guerra has given her final performance with Alonzo King LINES Ballet.

Ella Titus has departed Miami City Ballet after 10 years in the company.

Birmingham Royal Ballet welcomes several new dancers, including first soloist Katherine Ochoa (from Cincinnati Ballet) and new artists Rafael Bejarano Vidal, Amber Cook, Tobi Johnson, Airi Kaboyashi, Thomas Kujawa, Oisin Middleton, Samantha Paige, and Gillian Whittall.

BRB also bids farewell to several dancers: Jack Easton and Shuailun Wu depart for Berlin Staatsballett, Oscar Kempsey-Fagg joins Bayerisches Staatsballett, Callum Findlay-White and Tessa Hogge move to Oklahoma City Ballet, and Gus Payne joins Sarasota Ballet as a soloist. Ariana Allen, Regan Hutsell, Yvette Knight, and Hamish Scott are also leaving BRB.

Several new dancers are joining Cincinnati Ballet: Rachele Pizzillo and Philip Fedulov as first soloists; Kana Arai, Nutsa Chekurashvili, Joey Dlearo, and Hibiki Tsukamoto as corps dancers; and Soren Campagna and Jenna Potvin as apprentices.

Corey Bourbonniere, of Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, is moving to Ballet Idaho as a principal.

In front of a bright yellow backdrop, Corey Bourbonniere jumps onstage with their arms in high fifth, their chest lifted up to the ceiling. They sauté with one leg in retiré derriere and wear light blue bants. — Corey Bourbonniere in Helen Pickett’s *Petal* at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. Photo by Aviana Adams, courtesy Ballet Idaho.

Isabel Borges and Cameron Cofrancesco are joining Smuin Contemporary Ballet.

At Diablo Ballet, former San Francisco Ballet soloist Diego Cruz Alvarez and Astrid Arvelo join the company for the 2025–26 season.

Chase Hanson has moved from Kansas City Ballet to National Ballet of Canada’s corps. Jackson Hazlett-Stevens, Campbelle Malicse, Heewon Moon, Celia Morrison, Felix Russell, and Miyu Tobata will dance with NBoC as new apprentices.

Alabama Ballet welcomes company dancer Alex Koulos and apprentices Isabella Kessler, Carrington Moser, Anne Trask, and Hannah Waldon.

Nevada Ballet Theatre says hello to new company member Sarah Knutson.

David West has moved from Orlando Ballet to Terminus Modern Ballet Theatre.

Kayleigh Western has joined Louisville Ballet as a company artist.

Indianapolis Ballet says hello to new corps members Ava Bernardo, Elaina da Fonte, and Carson Van Popering; and to apprentice Allison Smith.

Sebastian Martinez has joined Ballet Tucson as a new corps member. Aki Widerquist, Zoë Betts, Kiera Morgan, and Emma Pascual join as apprentices.

New England Ballet Theatre welcomes the following dancers: Jacob Shoup and Zoe Simons as soloists, Alfred Ibsen and Michela Poynter as corps members, and Juliana Anderson as an apprentice.

Stella Elpedes and Abigail Herron have joined The Tallahassee Ballet.

Chattanooga Ballet says hello to new company members Anna Anderson, Lucy Sheppard, and Bishop Kaschock-Marenda.

La Scala Ballet prima ballerina Alice Mariani and Norwegian National Ballet principal Ricardo Castellanos will join English National Ballet as guest principals for the company’s 2025–26 season opening night.

Mackenzie Brown will remain a part of Stuttgart Ballet as a guest principal for the upcoming season.

Mackenzie stands in plié on her left leg in an attitude penchée with her right leg. Martí stands in a lunge with his right leg forward and grabs her right wrist with his right hand. She looks away from him and wears a white tutu with an ornate crown and feathered headpiece. — Mackenzie Brown and Martí Paixá in John Cranko’s *Swan Lake*. Photo courtesy Stuttgart Ballet.

Awards and Recognitions

The 2025 Princess Grace Award winners and honoraria have been announced. The winners for Dance Performance include American Ballet Theatre corps member Madison Brown and ABT Studio Company dancer Kayla Mak. Former Dresden Semperoper Ballett second soloist Houston Thomas has won a Choreography award, and Charlotte Ballet company member Anna Mains is among the Dance Performance honoraria recipients. ABT principal Isabella Boylston has won a Princess Grace Statue Award, which recognizes previous PGA winners who have continued to make significant contributions in their fields.

Matthew Astley received English National Ballet’s 2024–25 season Corps de Ballet Award, given annually by the artistic staff in recognition of an exceptional corps member.