News of Note: What You Might Have Missed in August 2026

News of Note: What You Might Have Missed in August 2026 Here are the latest promotions, appointments, and departures, as well as notable awards and accomplishments, from August 2026. Plus, a new opportunity for choreographers. Comings & Goings Antonia Franceschi has been named artistic director of New York Theatre Ballet after serving as interim artistic director since January. Tracy Li has been appointed artistic director of Cape Town City Ballet. Washington, DC’s Dance Place dismissed executive director André Mazelin on August 18. Erin A. Skinner will serve as interim executive director while the search for a replacement is underway. Michael Burfield has been named rehearsal director at Nashville Ballet. Michele Gifford has joined Avant Chamber Ballet as a répétiteur and rehearsal director. Felicia Swoope has been named executive director of Louisville Ballet. Kitty Sailer joined NW Dance Project as managing director. Jessica Lang will succeed founder Kevin McKenzie as artistic advisor of Kaatsbaan Cultural Park on October 1. Jooyoung Kwon has joined Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre as a soloist. Soloist JoAnna Schmidt has retired, and soloist Josiah Kauffman has departed the company. At Oregon Ballet Theatre, Zuzu Metzler, Juliette Ochoa, Nicholas Sakai, and Cyrus Shaskan have been promoted to soloist. New York Public Library for the Performing Arts’ Jerome Robbins Dance Division curator Linda Murray has stepped down. Awards & Honors Mason Evans, India Hobbs, Tsai Hsi Hung, Jordan Johnson, Demetrius Lee, and Destin Morisset were among the 2026 Princess Grace Award recipients. Honoraria were awarded to Starinah Dixon, Seth Gibson, and Kalen Simpson. Naomi Funaki, Riley O’Flynn, and Christian A. Warner were among the past honorees who received special project grants, and Tommie-Waheed Evans and Ching Ching Wong were named Princess Grace Artist Fellows. 2025–26 Clive Barnes Award recipients include Patrick Gamble, India Hobbs, and Yoon Jung Seo (Honored Artists in Dance); Jasmine Amy Rogers (Honored Artist in Theater); and Marina Harss (Clive Barnes Award for Achievement in Media and Journalism). Arturo Lyons and Omari Wiles will receive Dance/NYC’s 2026 NEW YORKERS FOR DANCE Award on October 21. New Funding Opportunity The Asian American Ballet Project is accepting applications for its inaugural Choreographer Residency Program, which will provide four Asian American choreographers with a $1,000 stipend and a two-week residency including 15 hours of dedicated rehearsal time with the company, culminating in a summer 2027 performance. Applications are due October 13. More information here.