Albert Evans (dancer)

Albert Evans
Born
Albert Pierce Evans

(1968-12-29)December 29, 1968
Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
DiedJune 22, 2015(2015-06-22) (aged 47)
Mount Sinai Hospital, New York City, U.S.
EducationSchool of American Ballet
Occupations
  • Ballet dancer
  • choreographer
Years active1988–2010
Career
Former groupsNew York City Ballet

Albert Pierce Evans (December 29, 1968 – June 22, 2015)[1] was an American ballet dancer and choreographer. He joined the New York City Ballet in 1988, became a principal dancer in 1995, making him the second African American dancer to hold this position, and had pursue choreography. He retired from performing in 2010, then served as a ballet master until his death.

Early life

Evans was born in Atlanta. He started training in ballet and modern dance after watching The Nutcracker on television.[1] In 1986, he entered the School of American Ballet on full scholarship.[2]

Career

In 1988, Evans joined the New York City Ballet. He was soon given lead roles by choreographers Eliot Feld and William Forsythe, both for NYCB's American Music Festival.[3] He was also cast in other lead roles while being a corps de ballet member.[2] He was promoted to soloist in 1991 and principal dancer in 1995.[4] He was the second African American principal dancer in the company, after Arthur Mitchell, and the sole one during his career.[3] Though he had never worked with George Balanchine, he was known for performing his works.[1] Choreographers he had created roles for includes Alexei Ratmansky, Christopher Wheeldon and Susan Stroman.[2] While he was still performing, he started pursuing choreography, his works include Haiku, Broken Promises, both for NYCB,[1] and Seego for The Washington Ballet.[2]

In June 2010, Evans retired after performing the third (Phlegmatic) variation from Balanchine's The Four Temperaments and Forsythe's Herman Schmerman pas de deux, partnering Wendy Whelan.[5] He then served as a ballet master with the company.[4] He also became an assistant to resident choreographer Justin Peck,[2] and appeared in the documentary Ballet 422, which follows the creation process of Peck's Paz de la Jolla.[6]

Death

On June 22, 2015, Evans died at the Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City following a short illness.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Fox, Margalit (June 24, 2015). "Albert Evans, Ebullient City Ballet Dancer, Is Dead at 46". New York Times.
  2. ^ a b c d e Kaufman, Sarah L. (June 23, 2015). "Albert Evans, trailblazing New York City Ballet dancer, dies at 46". The Washington Post.
  3. ^ a b La Rocca, Claudia (November 19, 2006). "Albert Evans Ascendant. No, Arrived". New York Times.
  4. ^ a b Nobeck, Jocelyn (June 23, 2015). "Pioneering black ballet star Albert Evans dead at 46". Miami Herald.
  5. ^ La Rocca, Claudia (June 21, 2010). "For Final Bow, a Shower of Flowers and Adoration". New York Times.
  6. ^ Kaufman, Sarah (February 27, 2015). "'Ballet 422': A young choreographer's nervous rise at New York City Ballet". The Washington Post.