2026-27 Staff Picks: Part 2

As our summer tour engagements wrap up, the countdown to the launch of our 26-27 Season begins in earnest. From All Balanchine to Contemporary Choreography, Eclectic NYCB to a bevy of full-length works: the programming represents a bounty of delights for every audience member's taste and curiosity. We're turning to those intimately involved in company productions for their recommendations.

For this second round of 26-27 Staff Picks, Corps de Ballet Member Oscar Estep, Costume Shop Manager Jarod Lewis, and First Violin Nelly Kim let us in on the flex packages they might build; read on for inspiration, whether you're ready to subscribe now or you’re considering becoming a season ticket holder as fall draws nearer. It's not too late to learn about the benefits of a subscription and take advantage of the enchantments the 26-27 Season promises. 

For the 26-27 Season, I would suggest seeing Jewels, All Balanchine II, and Masters at Work II. These three programs connect some of Balanchine’s best ballets across his entire choreographic catalog.

On the Masters at Work II program, Prodigal Son—despite being one of his earliest works for Ballets Russes—has one of the most innovative and groundbreaking pas de deux that still instills a sense of predation and entrancement.

Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2 on the All Balanchine II program is one of the most beautiful and technical ballets in our repertory. Although the costuming, set, and even name have changed over time, the choreography still makes it one of Balanchine’s most exciting ballets. 

Finally, I would suggest seeing Jewels, one of the all time greats of Balanchine’s choreography. This grandiose full-length ballet is Balanchine’s love letter to the art form and the French, American, and Russian styles that shaped his own. Jewels has always been special to me personally because it was the first ballet I performed as an apprentice.

While the combined choreography of Justin Peck, Christopher Wheeldon, and Jamar Roberts on the Contemporary Choreography II program brings a modern edge to the classical world of ballet, the costumes designed by Tsumori Chisato, Holly Hynes, and Iris van Herpen also push the boundaries. In Pulcinella Variations, you have mosaics of colors and textures from a pair of hand-painted hands embracing a dancer, and another who pirouettes across the stage in a "half tutu"; that is countered by the monochromatic colors on each dancer in Liturgy, where the use of negative space on the woman's unitard adds to the breath of the pas de deux. The program ends  with Foreseeable Future, which pushed the costume department to incorporate new technology and traditional techniques, bringing to life wings that move the air like water, countered by the reflections of melted metallic pieces that flash under the stage lights. 

The way costumes are used across the Contemporary Choreography III program is singular, opening with Concerto for Two Pianos' Zac Posen-designed, airy silk dresses that have a similar silhouette from a distance; up close, each dress's design is uniquely draped for each dancer. That’s followed by Santo Loquasto's designs for The Naked King, where you have a golden king—closely followed by his business-suited entourage and assembled townsfolk in their work clothes—who is then cast a mockery by three electrifying con artists. The night closes with Humberto Leon's costume designs from his clothing line Opening Ceremony that bring the streets of NYC to the sneaker ballet The Times Are Racing. 

On the All Balanchine V program, Serenade blue, the black-and-white of Stravinsky Violin Concerto, and the ruby pinks of La Valse could not have come alive without the collaborative designs of Barbara Karinska working alongside Balanchine. In Serenade, the iconic blue bodice with matching, ever-flowing skirt has subtleties that the majority of audience members would never notice because of Karinska's ingenuity. Every costume must not distract from the choreography, and for our Black & White ballets, the costumes do exactly that, by silhouetting the body of the dancers with costumes that pop from the grey floor, allowing you to see every detail of the footwork. La Valse's corps de ballet skirts all feature a brilliant design of various shades of blacks, pinks, yellows, and blues, layered upon one another to finally present to the audience with what looks like a shadowy yet rich pink.

My first pick is Masters at Work I. It’s like the perfect meal. You have a light and elegant appetizer in La Source, a substantial and meaty Four Temperaments, and then a fun and whimsical dessert in The Concert.

I would also choose All Balanchine II. Agon is one of my absolute favorite ballets ever. It’s one of those works you can watch—and play—over and over again, yet it always feels new and reveals something different each time. Between Mozartiana and Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2, you get two very different sides of Tschaikovsky. In Mozartiana, you get a beautiful, restrained, and spiritual Tschaikovsky, and in the Piano Concerto, you get a more grand and expansive one. This program is an incredibly rich and satisfying evening both musically and choreographically. Balanchine at his best is very hard to top.

My final choice would be Masters at Work II, because I love Prodigal Son so much. There’s something so raw and dramatic about it, and it contains some of the most powerful and moving music we get to play. There’s a magical moment near the very end when the flute drifts through the theme with an almost childlike purity. Then the harmony suddenly shifts, and the bassoon enters with a simple ascending line that feels like a hand being extended, as if to say, “Come in, you’re home.” The strings then open up, and all of the emotional tension releases. It feels like a moment of forgiveness and redemption. It gets me every time. Another favorite on that program is Other Dances. Although I don’t play it, it’s one of my all-time favorites. Intimate, playful, and deeply musical. Programs like this remind me just how emotionally powerful ballet can be.

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