Inside American Ballet Theatre’s Stylish Spring Gala

There’s a first time for everything! While the city’s American Ballet Theatre supporters are used to donning a black tie and hot-footing it to The Metropolitan Opera House for the annual ABT Spring Gala and summer season preview, this year looked a little different. Instead, guests gathered at Cipriani 42nd Street, giving a whole new meaning to the terms ‘dinner and a show,’ and ‘up close and personal.’

Fashion-wise, the guests delivered. Aoki Lee Simmons cut a cool figure in a Roger Vivier vest and black slacks. Katie Holmes wore a floaty Pucci number. And a gaggle of girls wore vintage—Alessia Fendi wore vintage Bob Mackie, Lauren Levison wore an incredible black Yves Saint Laurent Haute Couture Runway piece from 1987, and Eileen Kelly was in a powdery blue vintage Valentino gown. The dancers also served looks. Styled by PJ Pascual, Stella Abrera wore Marchesa, Gillian Murphy wore Oscar de la Renta, Erica Lall wore Et Ochs.

Post-cocktail hour, attendees took their seats adjacent to a temporary stage that had been installed in the stately ballroom for one night only. The evening’s program began with an honor for Chai Vasarhelyi, the Oscar-winning filmmaker behind projects such as Nyad, Free Solo, and The Rescue. The work my husband and I do might thrill some of you, she said, referring to her co-director Jimmy Chin, “but we are always thrilled by the beauty, athleticism, and passion of this amazing dance company. The world is a tricky place right now, but, hopefully, we’ll always be able to escape into the world of dance.”

That momentary escapism came in the form of several excerpts previewing what’s to come this summer season, which takes place from June 18 to July 20. Given the floor plan and the dinner tables’ proximity to the action, patrons were indeed thrilled to be able to see their favorite dancers’ every move in intricate, awe-inspiring detail.

A particular highlight that was on everyone’s lips came in the form of two previews of world-renowned British choreographer Wayne McGregor’s Woolf Works. The award-winning ballet, accompanied by music composed by Max Richter and inspired by the writings of Virginia Woolf, will have its New York premiere this June having made its North American debut via ABT in California last month. Giving a sense of what’s to come, Calvin Royal III and Chloe Misseldine, and James Whiteside and Devon Teuscher, respectively, performed excerpts from two of the ambitious and artistic work’s three acts.

Dancers Skylar Brandt and Jake Roxander, Gillian Murphy and Thomas Forster, Christine Shevchenko and Cory Stearns, Isabella Boylston and Joo Won Ahn, Cassandra Trenary and Herman Cornejo, and Catherine Hurlin and Aran Bell also took to the stage to perform teasers of crowd-favorites including Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, Onegin, and Like Water for Chocolate; the latter of which enjoyed its New York premiere during ABT’s summer season last year.

As always, attendees were invited to take a leaf out of the dancers’ books and join them on the dancefloor following dessert. As for those too shy, they can get their kicks in the audience of the Metropolitan Opera House next month instead.