Three Dancers Suspended From NY City Ballet Over 'Inappropriate Communications'

The New York Times reports that just three weeks before its new season, following the departure of former leader Peter Martins - three male principal dancers have been suspended from performing with the New York City Ballet this season.

The dancers - Chase Finlay, Amar Ramasar and Zachary Catazaro - are accused of "inappropriate communications made via personal text and email" which were "personal in nature" and the company had determined that they "violated the norms of conduct that New York City Ballet expects from its employees."

Chase Finlay resigned last week. Amar Ramasar and Zachary Catazaro have been suspended without pay until 2019.

Amar Ramasar has been absent from the company of late, performing in CAROUSEL on Broadway.

New York City Ballet is one of the foremost dance companies in the world, with a roster of spectacular dancers and an unparalleled repertory. The Company was founded in 1948 by George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein, and it quickly became world-renowned for its athletic and contemporary style. Jerome Robbins joined NYCB the following year and, with Balanchine, helped to build the astounding repertory and firmly establish the Company in New York.

Following Balanchine's death, in 1983, Jerome Robbins and Peter Martins were named Co-Ballet Masters in Chief, and from 1990 until he retired in 2017, Mr. Martins assumed sole responsibility for the Company's artistic direction. In 2009 Katherine Brown was named NYCB's first-ever Executive Director, a position created to oversee the administrative management of the Company. In December of 2017, an interim artistic management team led by NYCB Ballet Master and former Principal Dancer Jonathan Stafford was appointed to oversee the day-to-day artistic management of the Company. Joining Stafford on the interim team are NYCB Resident Choreographer and Soloist Justin Peck, as well as Ballet Masters Craig Hall and Rebecca Krohn. Widely acknowledged for its enduring contributions to dance, NYCB is committed to promoting creative excellence and nurturing a new generation of dancers and choreographers.

Read the full report here.

Photo: Amar Ramasar by Walter McBride