Taylor Stanley

New York City Ballet: Apprentice (2009-2010), Corps de Ballet (2010-2013), Soloist (2013-2016), Principal (2016-present)
BalletCollective

Image result for taylor stanleyTaylor Stanley was born to a mixed-race family in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and started dancing at age three. He received his training from The Rock School, Miami City Ballet summer intensives, and the School of American Ballet starting in 2008.
During his time at SAB, he performed in George Balanchine’s Stars and Stripes and was a recipient of the Mae L. Wien Award for Outstanding Promise.
The following year, Stanley joined New York City Ballet as an apprentice. He became a member of the corps de ballet in 2010 and was awarded the Janice Levin Dancer Award in 2011/12. During this time, he performed the role of Romeo in Romeo and Juliet.
Stanley was promoted to the rank of soloist in 2013 and principal in 2016.
In 2015, Stanley started to pursue a BA through the LEAP program at St. Mary’s College of California.
He received a Bessie Award in 2019.
Image result for taylor stanley
Photo by Jayme Thorton, via Dance Magazine.

Stanley originated feature roles in Kyle Abraham’s The Runaway; Warren Carlyle’s Something to Dance About; Pontus Lidberg’s The Shimmering Asphalt; Lauren Lovette’s Not Our Fate and The Shaded Line; Peter Martins’ Mes Oiseaux; Justin Peck’s Belles-Lettres, Capricious Maneuvers, Everywhere We Go, In Creases, New Blood, The Most Incredible Thing (The Creator), Principia, Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes, and Scherzo Fantastique; Alexei Ratmansky’s Odessa; Myles Thatcher’s Polaris; and Peter Walker’s ten in seven. He also originated many corps roles in pieces by choreographers like Benjamin Millepied, Justin Peck, and Peter Martins.

His featured roles include those in George Balanchine’s Apollo, The Nutcracker, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Symphony in C, and Western Symphony; August Bournonville’s Bournonville Divertissements; Peter Martins’ The Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, Fearful Symmetries, Romeo + Juliet, and Hallelujah Junction; Justin Peck’s Year of the Rabbit and The Times Are Racing; Jerome Robbins’ The Four Seasons, Moves, Interplay, The Goldberg Variations, and N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz; and Christopher Wheeldon’s Les Carillons, Polyphonia, and Carousel.

Even as a 19-year-old apprentice, Stanley was described by Dance Spirit Magazine as having “buoyant jump, clean, crisp pirouettes and jaw-dropping extensions” and a “regal elegance.” Five years later, Pointe Magazine also lauded his “regal presence.” Fellow NYCB dancer Erica Pereira noted that Stanley’s partnering is exceptional, and choreographer Justin Peck described Stanley as “the most accurate interpreter of my movement style.”

Sources:

Taylor Stanley, New York City Ballet
Taylor Stanley, Wikipedia
Prince Charming: Taylor Stanley, Dance Spirit
Moving Muse: Taylor Stanley Comes Into His Own at New York City Ballet, Pointe Magazine

See also:

Why We Can’t Take Our Eyes Off of Taylor Stanley, Dance Magazine
Choreographer Kyle Abraham & New York City Ballet’s Taylor Stanley Join Forces for a Powerful Collaboration, The Dance Enthusiast

Video links:

NYC Ballet’s Taylor Stanley on Jerome Robbins’ OPUS 19/THE DREAMER
Taylor Stanley on THE RUNAWAY: Anatomy of a Dance
Cas noms que nous portons by Choreographer Kyle Abraham and NYCB’s Taylor Stanley
NYC Ballet’s Taylor Stanley on George Balanchine’s SQUARE DANCE
NYC Ballet’s Justin Peck and Taylor Stanley on Peck’s Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes
Taylor Stanley (NYCB): Coppelia Variation, YAGP 2008 (Age 16)
On Set | New York City Ballet’s Preston Chamblee and Taylor Stanley
Taylor Stanley | Cover Shoot | Dance Magazine

Social media:

Instagram @taylor.g.stanley

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