Interview: Theatre Life with Megan Fairchild

Today’s subject Megan Fairchild has been dancing with New York City Ballet (NYCB) since 2001. She started as an apprentice before joining the company as a member of the corps de ballet. In 2005 she became a principal dancer. NYCB is performing Coppélia week at Kennedy Center in the Opera House and this evening, if you choose to attend as you should, You will see Megan Fairchild perform in the role of Swanilda. If you are unable to attend this evening, the ballet plays through March 30th.

Over the past 24 seasons with NYCB, Megan has performed many works by George Balanchine, Peter Martins, Justin Peck, Jerome Robbins, and many other world renowned choreographers.

A few of her many highlights include The Goldberg Variations, Union Jack, Who Cares?, and Nutcracker.

Among the roles she has originated, some highlights include Land of Nod for choreographer Robert La Fosse, Bal de Couture for Peter Martins, and From You Within Me for choreographer Christopher Wheeldon.

In 2014 Megan was featured as Ivy Smith in the Broadway revival of On The Town. For her work on that production, she was nominated for a Featured Actress in a Musical Outer Critics Circle Award and was rewarded with a Theatre World Award.

Megan Fairchild has been with NYCB for 24 years. That is one heck of a run. Read on to see why NYCB has been her artistic home for so long.

If you are able to see Megan Fairchild this evening in NYCB’s Coppélia, you will be watching a true artist at work. If you are able to catch a performance anytime this weekend, I guarantee you will enjoy what you see. The production boasts actual scenery (as opposed to projections) and a full acoustic orchestra which means no mics and no electronics. You know, the way things used to be.

Megan Fairchild has is truly living her theatre and dance life to the fullest and that my fellow readers is truly en pointe.

At what age did you begin your journey into dance?

My mom put me in a tap class at 4.5—at Gay’s Dance Academy, just a tiny little place in a strip mall. I loved tap, but you had to do ballet and jazz to attend classes and that’s how I got introduced to ballet. I switched to a bigger studio where we did competitions, but I always focused on tap duets and ballet solos.

Where did you receive your training?

Starting at the age of 9 I performed in Ballet West’s Nutcracker every year and it became the highlight of my entire year. Because I found performing with a professional company so fun, I focused fully on ballet starting at 12 and trained at the Ballet West Conservatory, two classes after school every day.

What was your first professional job as a dancer?

I danced as a trainee with Ballet West at the age of 15. I joined them during certain performance periods when they needed extra dancers. It was a great intro into the industry, and I got a lot of great advice from the professionals there on what to do next. At that time, Ballet West only took taller dancers—so crazy to think about now—the women had to be 5’6” just to audition. I got to dance in Balanchine’s Four Temperaments, which funny enough I’ve never been a part of as a member of NYCB.

Can you please tell us a little something about Coppélia?

To keep it really short, Coppélia is a full length ballet set in a village hundreds of years ago. Swanilda and her boyfriend are having a tiff, they all end up sneaking into a doll maker's house, and Swanilda pretends to be one of his dolls before she can escape. In the end, her and Frantz get married and live happily ever after. There are comedic moments, it doesn’t take itself too seriously and is a lot of fun for all.

You are dancing the role of Swanilda in Coppélia. Have you danced any other roles in the ballet?

Early on in my career, I danced as one of Swanilda’s friends. I saw Jenny Ringer and Alexandra Ansanelli do the leads and remember their performances well. You always draw on those memories as you dance a role. Even after so many years. I remember the quiet calmness of Jenny Ringer in the 3rd Act Pas de deux, just so much grace and command. And I think a lot of Alexandra in 2nd act, she added so much spice and fun sassiness. Swanilda was the beginning of major responsibility for me at NYCB. At 19 as a corps member, up on tour in Saratoga (I had only joined 2 years earlier as an apprentice) I had been covering the role but didn’t really think I would be doing it right away. It just so happened that all of the other principal women who did Swanilda were injured, and I was told I would do all four shows, two of them in one day. I said ok and turned around and cried on the way back to the corps dressing room. I was so scared. But long story short, I did it, and I did it pretty dang well. So much so that I was cast again the next winter season and promoted to soloist the night before the first show.

From first rehearsal to first performance, how long did it take to put together Coppélia?

We started at the end of NYCB’s 2025 Winter Season, so I guess the last week in February we started putting it together. Then we took one week off, and then rehearsed for another week and a half before this tour. So not too much time! It’s a relatively simple partnering ballet, but what is almost more important are the characters, that you have good chemistry for the acting bits. My new partner KJ is perfect as Frantz and it’s fun to see someone so right for something get a great opportunity and have a front row seat for his debut. I had principals cheering me on when I did my debut years ago, and I know how much it means to have their support and trust. Plus, I think he’s just all-around awesome and it’s great to be in the studio together and get to dance with him.

Because Coppélia isn’t a new ballet, is the process of putting it together shorter than it would be for a new piece?

Absolutely! But it’s still a full-length ballet, so when we are working on it, rehearsals are usually 1.5-2 hours long if we want to run the whole thing. We usually start working on it a couple of weeks before we perform it.

You’ve been with NYCB for 24 years now. What is it about this company that keeps you coming back?

NYCB is a repertory company -- we have annual contracts and usually no one leaves until they retire. For most of us, it’s the top place we have ever wanted to be, and the thought never really occurs to go anywhere else. It’s where you have your whole career, unlike in the Broadway world where you might bounce around from production to production. We are all initially here for the repertory choreographed by George Balanchine, and all of the ballets this company gets to perform. There is nowhere else that gets to dance this much Balanchine repertory. 

You performed the role of Ivy Smith in the Broadway revival of On The Town. Can you please talk about the experience of being in that show and how different was the process for you coming from the world of ballet?

Life changing! It was one of the best things I could have done at that point in my life. It really shook things up for me as a performer and made me realize that the biggest priority is putting on a show, entertaining the audience! Not doing a perfect double pirouette. Also speaking and singing on stage was such a fun challenge. And I learned so much from all my colleagues. Broadway performers have a hustle like I have never seen, and also so much gratitude for getting to be part of a successful show. I will never forget Jay Armstrong Johnson saying onstage one night before the curtain went up, “You guys we are on f****ing Broadway!” It was such a cool experience for me. Truly changed my life in so many ways. And I had to learn to pace my weeks – I couldn’t come out with all my energy in the first shows of a week, otherwise I would have nothing left by the weekend. It was a completely different ballgame. A marathon, not a sprint.

Every dancer has a role they would most like to dance. What would that role be for you?

Well, I’m retiring in a year, so I’m not really thinking about doing new things. I’ve gotten to do an incredible array of wonderful ballets over my career, and I have no need to desire more. When you are in a company this large, you do start to specialize in certain things, but I really like the niche in classical Balanchine that I have found—it’s what I’m best at. My mind is thinking about what role I will have after I’m done dancing! That’s all I think about these days and just enjoy doing my awesome repertory for one last year.

Special thanks to Kennedy Center's grand jete Senior Press Representitive Brittany Laeger for her assistance in coordinating this interview.

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