NEW SEASON: American Repertory Ballet dancer Emily Cordies-Maso will appear in the company’s “Americana” program, a mixed bill that is one of several upcoming programs starting in October. (Photo by Harald Schrader)
American Repertory Ballet, led by Interim Artistic Director Samantha Dunster with Artistic Associate Gillian Murphy and Artist in Residence Ethan Stiefel, has announced its schedule for the 2025-26 season.
At the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC), the season begins with the return of Stiefel and Johan Kobborg’s Giselle in October, followed by the premiere of Cinderella in March 2026, and a mixed bill of world premieres and celebrated works in May 2026.
Additionally, ARB will present an evening of moonlit ballets at the Union County Performing Arts Center’s Festival of the Moon in October 2025, and the company’s touring production of The Nutcracker in November and December at venues throughout New Jersey.
“It will be a ‘season of seasons’ as ARB leans into a haunting October, magical family fun during the holidays, fairytale romance just after Valentine’s Day, and Americana fanfare to celebrate the country’s 250th anniversary,” says Executive Director Julie Diana Hench. “We invite audiences of all ages to join us at the theater and make memories together, and to experience the transformative power of the performing arts.”
Giselle will be danced at NBPAC, 11 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick, October 10 at 7 p.m., October 11 at 2 and 7 p.m., and October 12 at 2 p.m. Tickets range from $42-$72. The Festival of the Moon, which includes Swan Lake Act II and other works, is October 17 at 7 p.m. at Union County Performing Arts Center. The company will dance beneath “Museum of the Moon,” a 23-foot. diameter sculpture created by artist Luke Jerram, which will be suspended in mid-air over the Orchestra section at UCPAC’s Main Stage.
Also featured will be Stiefel’s if, a solo that traces the contours of love and loss set to “If I Could Only Fly” by American singer-songwriter and poet Blaze Foley; and Lar Lubovitch’s Something About Night, a quintet set to the voices of Franz Schubert’s male choral songs. Tickets range from $36-$56.
The Nutcracker will take place from Friday, November 28 through Sunday, December 21, at McCarter Theatre in Princeton, Two River Theater in Red Bank, and the State Theatre New Jersey in New Brunswick. McCarter dates are November 28 at 2 and 7 p.m., November 29 at 1 and 6 p.m., and November 30 at 1 p.m. Tickets are $49-$79.
Cinderella choreographed by Dunster is March 6-8 at NBPAC. Dates are March 6 at 7 p.m., March 7 at 2 and 7 p.m., and March 8 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $42-$72.
The season concludes with “Americana,” a mixed bill including George Balanchine’s Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux and an excerpt from Stars and Stripes, along with world premieres by Stiefel and ARB dancer Michelle Quiner. Performances are May 1 at 7 p.m., and May 2 and 3 at 2 p.m. at NBPAC. Tickets are $42-$72.
Visit arballet.org for more information.