When our annual Summer Intensive ended on June 20, we reflected on how great it was to work with these remarkable emerging artists whose talents were certainly apparent when they performed Nascimento Novo and Ludwig, two intricate and physically challenging David Parsons pieces. We were also delighted to have given them the chance to take masterclasses led by David and former Parsons Dance member Liz Koeppen Kalosieh and to have them learn ballet and modern dance technique from our dancers. Thanks to all participants! We are eager to learn how your dance careers develop.
A Triple Wrap!
May has been a particularly merry month as we prepared for and danced our way through three fabulous events. The fun actually began on April 29 with the opening of our Joyce season that ran through May 10. We were thrilled by the audience response to our eclectic program, featuring three new works and cherished pieces from the Parsons repertory.
Next up, we continued our fifth year of partnership with Ballet Tech—The New York City Public School for Dance with May 15 and 16 shows at The Battery Park Conservancy’s Bosque Fountain where we staged David’s About Sprouts, a free performance for parents, friends, and passersby who had a grand time watching rollicking fourth and fifth graders who were clearly energized by the beautiful outdoor setting.
And on May 19, we gathered at Manhattan’s Sony Hall for our 2026 Gala-- a fun-packed evening honoring arts leader Cora Cahan. Thanks to all of you who showed up in May to support our company and express enthusiasm for what we do.
GIF Photos 1, 3: Paula Lobo, 2: Parsons Dance Archive, 4: Joe Rayome, 5-7: Christopher Duggan
Check Out The NY Times Profile On Courtney Washington
Our Annual Joyce Theater Season
April 29-May 10
Read this story in today’s New York Times about the amazing Courtney “Balenciaga” Washington and get tickets now to see the world premiere of Fearless, her latest work, when the Parsons dancers perform it at The Joyce, along with the world premieres of David’s Ludwig and Mayte Natalio’s Do Not Go Gentle.
The high-powered program, also featuring Parsons repertory favorites, closes with a celebration of the 20th anniversary of Nascimento Novo.
Behind The Scenes: David's New Work
With our upcoming Joyce season featuring two world premieres and a new co-commission, we want to introduce you to these works before you see them performed live at The Joyce this spring - April 29-May 10.
We’re starting with Ludwig, David’s new piece, a high energy delight that was made during the company’s August 2025 residency at Arts Center Lake Placid. Check out this video for some insight from David and our dancers about their creative process and watch some rehearsal footage, too.
On The Road!
Earlier this month, our dancers traveled to Texas for a February 5 show in San Antonio, where they appeared at the Carver Center’s Jo Long Theatre for the Performing Arts before moving on to Tyler for a February 7 performance at UT Tyler’s Cowan Center. The company presented masterclasses, student shows, and evening performances — engaging with the communities while bringing some of our greatest hits to the stage.
Check out this video by the Carver Center that recaps our San Antonio appearance.
A treat for our dancers to perform in sunny and warm Texas!
Join us on the road this spring:
Lyndon, VT (March 28)
Worcester, MA (April 2)
Great Barrington, MA (April 4)
Reading, PA (April 9)
Stony Brook, NY (April 11)
Palm Desert, CA (April 15)
Santa Monica, CA (April 18-19)
Following our spring tour, the company returns for our New York City season at The Joyce Theater from April 29 - May 10. Highlighting the program are two world premieres: one created by David Parsons, set to the second movement of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9; and one by Mayte Natalio, with an original score by Daniel Kluger. Also on the roster: a new co-commission with Works & Process by Courtney "Balenciaga" Washington centering on the dancers’ remarkable collective strength. Stay tuned in the coming months for behind the scenes videos devoted to these three compelling new works.
In The Studio: About Sprouts
From January 13 through 26, Parsons Dance was in residency as we continue our partnership with fourth and fifth graders from Ballet Tech — The New York City Public School for Dance. Once again, we are delighted to teach developing young artists the choreography for About Sprouts, the playful David Parsons work slated to be performed on May 15 and 16 at The Battery. A season highlight both for our company and the community, this delightful free event is filled with these enthusiastic students moving through the park alongside our dancers and a colorful sea of ribbons! Put it on your calendars for May and stay tuned for details.
Summer Intensive: Upcoming Deadlines
Registration is now open for Parsons Dance 2026 Summer Intensive, one of our most sought-after educational programs. This year, the Intensive will take place at Marymount Manhattan College from June 8 through June 20. We encourage enthusiastic students and aspiring professionals to grab this chance to develop their contemporary dance technique and to learn new and classic works from the company repertory while receiving individualized instruction from David Parsons and our dancers.
Important Deadlines:
March 1 - Scholarship Application Deadline
March 31 - Early Bird Deadline (Use Code EARLYBIRD to unlock a $100 discount!)
David Parsons Honored With Lifetime Achievement Award
Photo by Jingzi Zhao
Congratulations to David for receiving the McCallum Theatre’s 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award on November 8 during the theatre’s annual Palm Desert Choreography Festival! While in Palm Desert, he also served as a judge for the Festival’s choreographic competition alongside acclaimed choreographer Daniel Ezralow, his friend since the 1980s when both were Paul Taylor Dance Company dancers. The experience was especially rewarding for David, who, as mentioned above, drives Parsons Dance to train emerging artists and encourages new audiences to share his passion for dance.
In The Studio: Milan
Parsons Dance continued its international educational outreach efforts from October 31–November 2, when David Parsons and company understudy Gabrielle DiNizo were in Milan leading an intensive for students interested in pursuing professional dance careers.
Conducted in partnership with Gisella Zilembo–Eventi Danza, the highly respected Italian organization that organizes dance events and intensives, the workshop delighted aspiring artists eager to embrace Parsons’ technique and creative spirit.
Get a sneak peek into the studio here.
Thank you to all of the participating students and schools for an incredible three days!
In Creation With Mayte Natalio
Former Parsons dancer and exceptionally talented choreographer Mayte Natalio is the recipient of this season’s Parsons Dance GenerationNow Fellowship, an award allowing her to create a work on our company. We're excited to share more about her work. The piece draws its narrative from two powerful sources: Do not go gentle into that good night, the treasured Dylan Thomas poem about defying death, and Pale Blue Dot, the compelling book by Carl Sagan whose title references a 1990 photograph of earth taken by Voyager 1 before it exited our solar system.
Mayte says that, in creating the piece, she “combines these mighty messages as she seeks to explore the profound smallness and fragility of our planet; the strength of humanity, the urgency of now; and the lasting resonance of Thomas’ defiance and Sagan’s awe.” Embracing this narrative direction, the work is set to a commissioned score by award-winning composer Daniel Kluger, celebrated for his genre-defying compositions incorporating bluegrass, jazz, neoclassical, and electronic styles that surface in such recently acclaimed shows as the 2019 Broadway revival of Oklahoma and the 2024 hit Oh Mary. Stay tuned to learn more about the work as it develops in the months ahead!
Summer 2025 Roundup
We are looking back at this wonderfully busy, incredibly productive summer, beginning with our annual Summer Intensive, which took place in NYC from June 16 through 28. As usual, it was rewarding for us to see how motivated these aspiring dancers were to work on growing their skills. Two weeks later, the company performed at the Parrish Art Museum Gala on July 19, followed by a July 26 appearance at the Westhampton Beach Project.
On August 31, our 2025 residency at the Lake Placid Center for the Arts wrapped up. From daily open classes and masterclasses, to performances for young audiences, open technical rehearsals, and behind-the-scenes showings, it was an inspiring few weeks. During the first week, we had the pleasure of working with Courtney “Balenciaga” Washington on a new work that we will be revisiting later this fall. During weeks two and three, David developed his new piece set to the second movement of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. Thank you to the Lake Placid Center for the Arts and the Lake Placid community for welcoming us back this year! We are deeply grateful to everyone who joined us in the studio and at the theater.
Closing night on August 30 was a truly unforgettable moment—a sold-out performance highlighted by a preview of David’s new work and the closing night of the LPCA theater before a newly renovated space opens in 2027 with the same work.
GIF Photos 1: Lynn Savarese Photography. Photo 3: Matt Borkowski. Photos 2, 4-6: Parsons Dance Archive
On The Road: July
Check out the below for photos taken on July 19 when we appeared in Water Mill, Long Island at The Parrish Art Museum Gala. Throughout the evening, we entertained the crowd with snippets from such Parsons works as Mr. Withers, Nascimento, and Shining Star, along with Takademe, staged in full. Our thanks go out to the Parrish team for including us in the festivities and to Hedley Studios who displayed miniature electric versions of classic cars that were great fun!
Next up is our Saturday, July 26 stop in Westhampton, another fabulous beach destination where the company will appear at the Westhampton Beach Project, the annual outdoor event created by local resident and artist Steven Colucci that takes place on Westhampton’s Great Lawn. The evening includes cocktails, hors d’oevres and food tents. Highlighting the Parsons program will be David’s Whirlaway, Caught, In The End, and Her Gifts, along with Jamar Roberts’ Juke and Robert Battle’s The Hunt.
Photo 1: Matt Borkowski, courtesy of BFA, Photo 2-4: Zach Hilty, courtesy of BFA
Elena D'Amario Joins Our Board Of Directors
Welcome, Elena D’Amario!
We are excited to announce that former Parsons’ dancer Elena D’Amario has joined our Board of Directors. Born in Pescara, Italy, Elena studied modern, ballet, contemporary and tap before coming to New York in 2010 to serve as a Parsons Dance apprentice. She went on to become a full-time company member from 2011-2019 and then returned to Italy, where she is a major television personality on Amici di Maria De Filippi, the celebrated show featuring singing and dance competitions, and a mentor to countless dance students. Throughout it all, she has continued to demonstrate her devotion to Parsons Dance. Elena has contributed much to the success of our Italian tours, following her tenure with the company. She has performed with us, and she has widened our audience by promoting us to her many fans. “Elena is an inspiration to me.” David declares. She is a very important artist in Italy, and I am thrilled that she's filling a larger role in the Parsons family.”
Thanks deeply, Elena, for taking this next step with us.
See "About Sprouts" At Battery Playscape: May 9-10
See About Sprouts at Battery Playscape!
Friday, May 9 at 2pm and 3pm
Saturday, May 10 at 2pm and 3pm
About Sprouts, the whimsical and athletic David Parsons work, is set on over 50 fourth and fifth grade students from Ballet Tech — The New York City Public School for Dance. Always a hit, this delightful free event features energetic young artists performing alongside Parsons dancers and a colorful sea of ribbons!
Join us at Battery Playscape, The Battery Conservancy’s lower Manhattan playground for these exciting performances. We’re deeply grateful to Ballet Tech and Battery Playscape for their continued partnership.
Performances are free and open to the public. We would love to see you there!
Directions To Battery Playscape
The nearest subway lines are the 4 and 5 Train to Bowling Green, R Train to Whitehall, W Train to Whitehall on weekdays, and the 1 Train to South Ferry.
On The Road: Los Angeles
5th graders performing for our dancers!
We recently returned from Los Angeles after participating in The Music Center’s Blue Ribbon Children’s Festival, the revered free arts education program that began in 1970. A crucial part of The Music Center’s commitment to engage young people in the arts, the Festival is designed for fifth-grade students who attend professional dance company performances and then get the chance to perform themselves. Over our six shows, we reached about 13,000 kids who demonstrated their enthusiasm for dance in many ways. So rewarding for them and for all of us!
Performance Photo by Todd Burnsed
In Process With Rena Butler
Photos courtesy of Paula Lobo
Check out these photos to see choreographer Rena Butler working with Parsons dancers on Sheep’s Gothic, her new piece based on the Aesop's fable A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing. In Butler’s words, the work is “a 17-minute game of ‘spotting the wolf’ through sinuous exchanges of pastoral and primal patterns sourced within wolf packs and sheep herds to conceal or reveal our truest form.”
The percussive, cinematic commissioned score is a braided dialogue between composer Darryl J. Hoffman and Felix Mendelssohn’s Chöre für Männerstimmen. Also impacting the piece: intriguing costume design created by Project Runway All Star’s Asha Ama Bias Daniels. Don’t miss the world premiere of Sheep’s Gothic at The Joyce this May!
In The Studio: NYC
Parsons dancers rehearsing with 2024 Ballet Tech students. Photo by Joe Rayome.
Parsons Dance always jumps at the chance to fulfill the part of its mission devoted to sustaining an appreciation for dance through education outreach programs. So, it’s with boundless enthusiasm that we announce the renewal of our partnership with Ballet Tech—NYC’s Public School For Dance. Earlier this month, we took to the studio to hold our first two-week residency with Ballet Tech students, who are training with Parsons dancers to learn About Sprouts, the delightful Parsons work that features these young artists performing with aerial puppets. We will continue to rehearse this spring before performances take place on May 9 and 10 when the piece will be re-staged for the fourth time at Battery Playscape, The Battery Conservancy’s lower Manhattan playground and public space.
And more is in the works! Beloved former dancer and Associate Artistic Director Liz Koeppen Kalosieh, now our Rehearsal Director, is in residency at Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music, Art And Performing Arts. She is teaching students In The End, the enchanting, intricate David Parsons’ piece created to music by the Dave Matthews Band. Liz is already in the studio as they prepare for May 30 and 31 performances.
On The Road
On January 17 and 18, the company returned for its seventh appearance at Lake Worth, Florida’s Duncan Theatre to perform such Parsons favorites as Whirlaway and Wolfgang, along with Robert Battle’s Takademe and Jamar Roberts’ Juke. How great it was to dance for so many enthusiastic fans!
We are in NYC now preparing for our upcoming spring U.S. touring schedule that includes a March stop in Lone Tree, Colorado and an appearance at The Music Center in Los Angeles for its Blue Ribbon Children’s Festival, a central part of the venue’s commitment to engaging young people in the arts. Up next will be April shows in Lincoln, Nebraska; Eau Claire, Wisconsin; Chicago; and Irvine, California.
And then it’s back to NYC where our annual season begins on May 13 with a special program and Gala celebration. As always, we’d love to see you at home and on the road!
Parsons dancers leading a masterclass before our two-show run - Thank you, Duncan Theatre!
Red Bucket Follies 2024
On December 9 and 10, the company was honored to join the roster of Red Bucket Follies, representing Dancers Responding to AIDS (DRA) and taking place at Broadway’s New Amsterdam Theatre. Initiated by our friends at Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, the show is named for the iconic red buckets that, for six weeks, volunteers hold in Broadway theater lobbies to collect audiences’ post-performance contributions. For our part in this fantastic display of songs, skits and dances, we staged the last section of David’s Whirlaway, his beloved New Orleans tribute created to an Allen Toussaint soundtrack. Thanks to our dear friends at DRA for including us in these magical and moving afternoons!
Congratulations to the Broadway, Off Broadway and touring productions that raised an astounding $5,320,146 for Broadway Cares and their essential life-saving programs.
Photos by Rebecca J. Michelson, courtesy of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS
In The Studio: Italia
Our Milan Intensive
Our Italy Intensives
Our time in Italy has extended beyond the stage to reach aspiring dancers in two Official Parsons Dance Intensives conducted in partnership with Gisella Zilembo-Eventi Danza. The first Intensive took place in Milan from November 1-3, where 93 students and 14 dance teachers were led by David and Abby Silva Gavezzoli, another cherished former Parsons dancer. The second, having taken place in Rome from Nov 15-17, was also taught by David and Abby along with Zoey Anderson, three amazing teachers who helped more than 63 young artists refine their technical skills.
Moments from our time in Italy
On The Road
"Parsons Dance overwhelms Italian audiences once again with its vibrant and radiant dance,” declared Askanews, the Milan publication, about the opening of the Italian tour in the city’s famed TAM Teatro Arcimboldi. Highlighting the three shows—the presence of Elena D’Amario, the beloved former Parsons dancer, who is now an Italian television star. Her rendition of Balance of Power, the impassioned David Parsons-created solo, simply brought the house down!
We're looking forward to greeting more fans before the tour ends in Genoa on December 3.