Conversations on Dance with Justin Peck

Justin Peck

Justin Peck is a Tony Award-winning choreographer, director, and dancer based in New York City. He is currently the acting Resident Choreographer of New York City Ballet.  Peck began choreographing in 2009 at the New York Choreographic Institute.  In 2014, after the creation of his acclaimed ballet Everywhere We Go, he was appointed as Resident Choreographer of New York City Ballet.  He is the second person in the institution’s history to hold this title.

Peck joined New York City Ballet as a dancer in 2006.  As a performer, Peck has danced a vast repertoire of works by George Balanchine , Jerome Robbins, Alexei Ratmansky, Benjamin Millepied, Christopher Wheeldon, and many others.  In 2013, Peck was promoted to the rank of Soloist, performing through 2019 with the company. Peck has created over 40 ballets– 20 of those for New York City Ballet.  His works have been performed by Paris Opera Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Miami City Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, LA Dance Project, Dutch National Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Houston Ballet, and Pennsylvania Ballet, to name a few.  His collaborators include composers Sufjan Stevens, Bryce Dessner (The National), Dan Deacon, Caroline Shaw, M83; visual artists Shepard Fairey, Marcel Dzama, John Baldessari, George Condo, Steve Powers, and Jules de Balincourt; and fashion designers Mary Katrantzou, Humberto Leon (Kenzo, Opening Ceremony), Tumori Chisato, and Dries Van Noten.

In 2014, Peck was the subject of the documentary Ballet 422, which followed him as he created NYCBallet’s 422nd original dance, Paz de la Jolla. In 2015, his ballet Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes won the Bessie Award for Outstanding Production. Peck directorial and choreographic work on film includes 20th Century Fox feature film RED SPARROW (starring Jennifer Lawrence and Joel Edgerton), the New York Times GREAT PERFORMERS Series (starring Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke Emma Stone, Glenn Close, and others), and the remake Steven Spielberg’s upcoming film WEST SIDE STORY.

Peck choreographed the 2018 Broadway revival of Carousel.  The production was directed by Jack O’Brien and stars Jesse Meuller, Joshua Henry, & Renée Fleming.  Peck has been awarded the National Arts Award (2018), the Golden Plate Honor from the Academy of Achievement (2019), and the Tony Award for his choreography on Broadway’s Carousel (2018).