Ballet Star David Hallberg to Present LEGACY at Lincoln Center, 4/17

Celebrated international ballet star, David Hallberg, offers an intimate look at the world-renowned ballet companies as they perform varied and rarely-seen contemporary works, representative of each preeminent institution. Hallberg will introduce each company and share an insider's perspective on the works and the institutions that have left an indelible impression on him as an artist. "David Hallberg Presents: LEGACY" will take place on April 17, 2015 at 7:00pm at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center. Tickets start at $45 and are available at the David H. Koch Theater Box Office, by calling 212.496.0600 or online at www.davidhkochtheater.com.

The program will feature the Tokyo Ballet in its US Debut, performing "Bakhti III," a rarely-seen work by Maurice Bejart set to traditional Indian music, and featuring the company's biggest stars, Mizuka Uena and Kazuo Kimura; the Australian Ballet's Amber Scott and Rudy Hawkes will present "Unspoken Dialogues" by choreographer Stephen Baynes; an ensemble of dancers from the Mariinsky Ballet, led by the famed Ekaterina Kondaurova, will present Mariinsky dancer/choreographer Anton Pimonov's piece, "Choreographic Game 3x3"; the Bolshoi Ballet dancers will present one of the contemporary works from the theatre's repertoire; the ABT Studio Company will present a new piece by choreographer Pontus Lidberg.

The program will include performances by dancers from The Mariinsky Ballet, The Bolshoi Ballet, The Australian Ballet, and the Tokyo Ballet in its the U.S. Debut. It will also feature ABT Studio Company, where Hallberg started his tenure at the American Ballet Theatre. The Gala will feature works by Pierre Lacotte, Stephen Baynes, Maurice Bejart, Jean-Christophe Maillot, and Yuri Smekalove, among others.

"Over the course of my career, having developed relationships with some of the world's leading dance companies, I have experienced these institutions as not only a performer, but a viewer as well. I have seen them from every viewpoint behind-the-curtain; a synthesis between insider and outsider. Every company has its own texture, vocabulary and singular place in dance history, and I have always wanted to share my perspective of these world renowned institutions. This unprecedented evening gives me the chance to present to the audience my first-hand, personal perspective on these extraordinary ballet companies as they perform repertoire unique to each respective institution," said Hallberg.

The evening is presented in association with Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP), a non-profit educational organization with a mission to support and develop world-class dancers ages 9 to 19 of all ethnic, economic, and geographic backgrounds by providing scholarship auditions as well as educational and performance opportunities. YAGP is a global network of dance, connecting students, teachers, schools, dancers, dance companies, and audiences worldwide. Additional information about YAGP is available at www.yagp.org.

DAVID HALLBERG was born in South Dakota and began his formal ballet training at the age of 13 with Kee Juan Han at the Arizona Ballet School. He continued his studies at the Paris Opera Ballet School and American Ballet Theatre. He became a member of ABT's Studio Company in September 2000; joined American Ballet Theatre in the corps de ballet in April 2001; promoted Soloist in January 2004 and Principal Dancer in May 2005.

Hallberg's repertoire at American Ballet Theatre includes leading roles in Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, Giselle, Don Quixote, The Sleeping Beauty, Onegin, La Bayade?re, Othello, Le Corsaire, The Nutcracker, Cinderella, Sylvia, La Sylphide, The Bright Stream, Lady of the Camellias and Raymonda. He dances a wide range of shorter works by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Kurt Jooss, Antony Tudor, Mark Morris, Twyla Tharp, Lar Lubovitch, Jiri Kylian, Frederick Ashton and William Forsythe. Alexei Ratmansky has created roles for Hallberg in five of his world premieres for ABT: On the Dnieper and Seven Sonatas in 2009; The Nutcracker in December 2010, The Firebird in 2012 and Chamber Symphony in 2013.

In 2011, Hallberg became the first American dancer to join the Bolshoi Ballet as a Premier Danceur. His repertoire with the Bolshoi includes leading roles in The Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, Giselle, Onegin and Nacho Duato's Remanso, as well as the Bolshoi's first performances of George Balanchine's Jewels and the Bolshoi premiere of Pierre Lacotte's Marco Spada, where he danced the title role originally created by Rudolf Nureyev.

In 2013, Hallberg made his debut with the Paris Opera Ballet, performing The Sleeping Beauty. In February 2014, he danced with the La Scala Ballet on tour in Hong Kong and made his debut with the Company in Milan later that year with three performances of Swan Lake.

In December 2012, Hallberg danced at the Kennedy Center Honors celebrating the career of Natalia Makarova. The performance, attended by President and Mrs. Obama, was telecast nationally. Other television/radio credits include The Colbert Show, CBS Sunday Morning, and NPR's All Things Considered and Here and Now.

Hallberg has performed as a guest artist with the Mariinsky Ballet, Teatro Colon Buenos Aires, Kiev Ballet, Royal Swedish Ballet, Opera di Roma, Georgian State Ballet and The Australian Ballet. In 2008, 2009, and 2011 he toured Russia, Eastern Europe and the United States with an internationally acclaimed project, Kings Of The Dance, in which he danced Frederick Ashton's Dance of the Blessed Spirits, originally created for Sir Anthony Dowell.

Hallberg's awards include the 2010 Benois de la Danse Prize, the Princess Grace Fellowship and the Chris Hellman Dance Award for 2002-2003, and the special "Rising Star Award" presented by Nina Ananishvili on behalf of the Georgian State Ballet in 2010.

Hallberg created the David Hallberg Scholarship to mentor young aspiring male students for a career in dance at the American Ballet Theatre Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School. He has also created The Innovation Initiative at ABT, which supports emerging choreographers in the field of dance.