2026 Festival Artists

Acclaimed choreographer Alexei Ratmansky is the Vail Dance Festival's Artist in Residence for the 2026 Festival, marking his first time in Vail to participate in the collaborative multidisciplinary Festival.  Ratmansky's works have been performed in Vail over the last years, including Fandango which was commissioned by the Festival in 2010.

Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, Alexei Ratmansky is of Ukrainian descent and trained at the Bolshoi Ballet School in Moscow prior to becoming a Principal Dancer with the Ukrainian National Ballet, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, and the Royal Danish Ballet. From 2004 to 2008, he was the Artistic Director of the Bolshoi Ballet. He served as Artist in Residence at American Ballet Theatre from 2008 to 2023, and in 2023 became Artist in Residence at New York City Ballet. He is also Associate Artist with Dutch National Ballet, and his work is performed by nearly all major international ballet companies.

Olivia Bell is a corps de ballet member with New York City Ballet. Born in Fort Worth, Texas, she trained locally before being accepted to the School of American Ballet in 2018. While a student, Olivia originated a featured role in Gianna Reisen’s Signs. In 2022 Olivia became an apprentice with New York City Ballet and was then promoted to corps de ballet in 2023. As a corps member Olivia has performed featured roles in Kyle Abraham’s Love Letter on Shuffle, George Balanchine’s Swan Lake, Tiler Peck’s Concerto for Two Pianos, and Jerome Robbins Interplay.

Adji Cissoko was born and grew up in Munich, Germany, where she trained at the Ballet Academy Munich and graduated with a diploma in dance. Cissoko attended the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at American Ballet Theatre in New York City on full scholarship before joining the National Ballet of Canada in 2010. In 2012, she was awarded the Patron Award of Merit by the Patrons’ Council Committee of The National Ballet of Canada. Cissoko joined LINES Ballet in 2014 and was named Associate Artistic Director in 2026. Since then, she’s originated many central roles and guested for galas worldwide. Cissoko has given multiple master classes and taught classes around the world as part of the company’s outreach program. In 2020, she became certified in health/life coaching and ABT’s National Training Curriculum. Cissoko choreographed her first piece, “AZIZ,” for Ballet X in 2021. She is also a 2022 recipient of the Toulmin Fellowship and was the Artist-in-Residence for Vail Dance Festival in 2023.

Chun Wai Chan is a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet, where he became the company’s first Chinese principal dancer since its founding in 1948. Chan is also the founder of Chunner Studio, a creative platform dedicated to artistic production, education, and cross-cultural collaboration through dance and the arts.

Philip Duclos is a soloist with The Royal Danish Ballet. He joined the company as a member of the corps de ballet in 2022, and was promoted to soloist in 2025. He has danced roles such as Prince Desiré in the Sleeping Beauty, Albrecht in Giselle, one of the principal men in Harald Lander’s Études, Melancholic in George Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments, the Sugarplum Cavalier in Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, Benno in Swan Lake, and the Premier Danseur in August Bournonville’s Kermesse in Bruges. He has also danced featured roles in Raymonda, Don Quixote, Wayne McGregor’s Dante Project, John Neumeier’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Alexei Ratmansky’s The Art of the Fugue. He was also awarded the Ballettens Venner Talent Prize in the spring of 2025. 

Lauren Lovette personifies the intertwining of dance and choreography, moving seamlessly from one to the other. Her work has been commissioned and performed by leading dance companies and festivals, including the New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, the Vail International Dance Festival, American Ballet Theatre Studio Company, the Paul Taylor Dance Company, Nevada Ballet Theatre, Juilliard, Oregon Ballet Theater, Colorado Ballet, as well as a self-produced evening entirely of her own work in which she also danced, Why It Matters.

Born in Thousand Oaks, California, Lovette began studying ballet at the age of 11 at the Cary Ballet Conservatory in Cary, North Carolina. She enrolled at SAB as a full time student in 2006. In October 2009, Ms. Lovette became an apprentice with NYCB and joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet in September 2010. Promoted to soloist in February 2013 and to principal dancer in June 2015, she stepped down from her position at the company in 2021 in order to embark on a career devoted to dance and choreography in more equal measure. She is now the choreographer in residence at the Paul Taylor Dance Company and performs as a guest principal dancer around the world.

Ms. Lovette received the Clive Barnes Award for dance in December 2012 and was the 2012-2013 recipient of the Janice Levin Award.

MIRA NADON was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and began her ballet training at the age of six at the Inland Pacific Ballet Academy in Montclair, California. She attended summer courses at the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of NYCB, in 2014 and 2015, before entering SAB full-time for the 2015 winter term. In November 2017, Ms. Nadon became an apprentice with NYCB and joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet in November 2018. Ms. Nadon was promoted to the rank of soloist in January 2022, and to principal in February 2023. Nadon has performed featured roles in ballets by Kyle Abraham, George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Sidra Bell, Ulysses Dove, Keerati Jinakunwiphat, Peter Martins, Justin Peck, Tiler Peck, Alysa Pires, Alexei Ratmansky, Pam Tanowitz, and Christopher Wheeldon. Her awards include the 2021 Clive Barnes Award in Dance, the 2022 Princess Grace Award, and the 2025 Forbes 30 Under 30 list.

Unity Phelan was born in Princeton, New Jersey where she studied at the Princeton Ballet School. After attending summer courses at the School of American Ballet, Phelan was invited to attend the school full time and remained at the school for three years. Phelan was invited to join the New York City Ballet in the winter of 2012 as an apprentice and joined the company as a Corps de Ballet member in 2013. In the Winter of 2017, Phelan was promoted to Soloist dancer and in the Fall of 2021, she was promoted to Principal dancer. In her time at New York City Ballet, Phelan has danced numerous ballets by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Alexei Ratmansky, Justin Peck, Christopher Wheeldon and other choreographers. Phelan has been featured in Dance Magazine, Elle Magazine, and People Style Magazine. In the last couple years, Phelan has been found on the silver screen acting in “John Wick 3: Parabellum” and “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”. In 2019, Phelan was awarded the Lincoln Center Emerging Artist Award for her work at New York City Ballet.

Melissa Toogood has been a prominent presence on the Vail stage since 2015. She is a New York Dance and Performance Award (Bessie)–winning, internationally recognized dancer and master teacher celebrated for her work with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, where she was one of the last dancers to work directly with Cunningham himself. A 2013 and 2015 Merce Cunningham Fellow and an official stager for the Merce Cunningham Trust, Melissa has taught his technique worldwide since 2007 and continues to stage his work for renowned companies, including the Stephen Petronio Company and the Washington Ballet. Most notably, Melissa is a longtime dancer with choreographer Pam Tanowitz, where she also served as Rehearsal Director and Artistic Associate, assisting on new works for major institutions such as The Australian Ballet, Martha Graham Dance Company, The Royal Ballet, Paul Taylor Dance Company and others. Melissa's freelance career spans performances with leading artists including Tanowitz, Kyle Abraham, Kimberly Bartosik, Michelle Dorrance, Rosie Herrera, Jodi Melnick, Rashaun Mitchell, Jamar Roberts, Sally Silvers, Bobbi Jene Smith, Christopher Williams, the Bang Group: Tap Lab, and the Stephen Petronio Company. Her own work has been commissioned by Boston Ballet, New York Theater Ballet, and the Vail Dance Festival. She most recently premiered Johnny Loves Johann, a collaborative creation and performance led by violinist Johnny Gandelsman, with John Heginbotham, Caili Quan, and Jamar Roberts. In 2025, Melissa was appointed Dean and Director of the Juilliard Dance Division and continues to shape the future of dance through education and mentorship.

Audrey Tovar-Dunster began her ballet training at the age of two. At age six, she was accepted to the School of Philadelphia Ballet and at eight was given the role of Marie in George Balanchine's The Nutcracker, which she performed for three seasons. While training at the School, she attended summer intensives with ABT, United Ballet Theatre, and The Royal Danish Ballet School. At age 12, Tovar-Dunster became a Trainee with Philadelphia Ballet and at 14 became one of the youngest members of their second company. During this time, she performed corps de ballet roles in a variety of Philadelphia Ballet productions. In September 2024, Tovar-Dunster began training at the ABT Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School under the direction of Stella Abrera. In April 2025, she won a silver medal at Youth America Grand Prix Finals in the pas de deux category and in May/June 2025, she participated in ABT Studio Company’s spring performances and summer tour as a Trainee. During the summer of 2025, she was invited to Italy to perform in the second season of the Stelle di Domani performances of Balletto Di Venezia. Tovar-Dunster joined ABT Studio Company in September 2025 under the artistic direction of Sascha Radetsky. In ABT Studio Company, she has created a role in Cerulean Skies by Brady Farrar and her other repertoire includes Gamzatti in the La Bayadere pas d’action, Cornbread by Twyla Tharp, Bernstein in a Bubble by Alexei Ratmanksy, Interplay by Jerome Robbins, and Christopher Wheeldon’s An American in Paris pas de deux. She has also performed in Alexei Ratmansky’s The Nutcracker with the main Company of American Ballet Theatre.

MARGUERITE WALLER Principal dancer, Company Manager; is a dancer, choreographer, and teaching artist born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona. Heavily involved in the local hip hop community, she pulls from various dance forms, such as Waacking, House, Locking, Breaking, Hip Hop, Postmodern Contemporary, and Tap, in her performance work, choreography, and freestyle/battle practice. She is a graduate of Arizona State University, obtaining a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance, a Minor in Justice Studies, and two Certificates in Arts Entrepreneurship and Socially Practice in Design and the Arts. In addition, Maggie is a Fulbright Summer Institute Participant, a recipient of the Joan Frazer Memorial Award for Judaism and the Arts, and a published writer. She recently became an FY24 Arts and Humanities Fellow through the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities. Maggie is a current resident of Brooklyn, NYC and is so grateful to be writing, moving, and making in her new home. She is continuously looking for new ways to connect with her community and create collaborative, inclusive, important dance and movement work on local, national, and global scales. Maggie is deeply honored to be a Principal dancer of Rennie Harris Puremovement, as well as the company’s Company Manager.

Colin Jacobsen is a violinist, composer, and Artistic Director of Santa Fe Pro Musica whose work is driven by a passion for collaboration, storytelling, and musical exploration. As a founding member of the acclaimed string quartet Brooklyn Rider and the orchestral collective The Knights, Jacobsen has become known for creating bold, genre-defying performances that bring together classical music, global traditions, and contemporary voices in fresh and unexpected ways. His wide-ranging collaborations have included artists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Philip Glass, Béla Fleck, Anne Sofie von Otter, and Kayhan Kalhor, reflecting a career shaped by curiosity and artistic openness.

In addition to his chamber and ensemble work, Jacobsen has appeared as a soloist with orchestras including the New York Philharmonic and San Francisco Symphony, and has toured internationally with Yo-Yo Ma’s Silkroad Ensemble since its founding in 2000. His compositions draw inspiration from musical traditions around the world and have been commissioned and performed by leading artists and ensembles internationally. Jacobsen is a graduate of The Juilliard School and the Royal Conservatory of The Hague.

View full bio here.

One of the most dazzling American pianists of her generation, Anne-Marie McDermott has played concertos, recitals, and chamber music in hundreds of cities throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. She is one of the most versatile, respected, and best-reviewed pianists of our time. McDermott continues her tenure as music and artistic director of the Bravo! Vail music festival, in Colorado, through 2026, which hosts world-renowned artists and orchestras from around the world. She is also the artistic director of the Ocean Reef Chamber Music Festival, in Florida; the artistic director of the McKnight Center’s Chamber Music Festival, at Oklahoma State University; and a former curator of the Mainly Mozart Spotlight Series, in San Diego.

Highlights of McDermott’s 2024-25 season include three performances of the Piano Concerto by the 20th-century American composer Amy Cheney Beach with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, with which she makes her subscription debut, and with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra (MA); her debut in Galway, Ireland, performing music by Bach, Busoni, and Brahms at a Music for Galway recital; Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4 with the Paducah Symphony Orchestra (KY); Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Des Moines Symphony, Palm Beach Symphony, and Vancouver Symphony Orchestra USA (WA); performances with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center at Alice Tully Hall in New York City, and on tour in Chicago, Grand Rapids, Kansas City, Ashland (OR), and Vienna (VA); a special chamber music program at the New World Symphony, in Miami Beach, that includes Mozart’s Quintet in E-flat major and Olivier Messiaen’s wartime masterwork Quartet for the End of Time; performances as a member of the SPA Trio—with soprano Susanna Phillips and violist Paul Neubauer—at the Rockefeller University (New York City), and at Arizona Friends of Chamber Music (Tucson); and a chamber music program at the McKnight Center for the Performing Arts, in Stillwater (OK).

McDermott’s 2023-24 season included performances with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, both resulting in immediate re-engagements. She also performed Mozart with the New York Philharmonic at the McKnight Center in Stillwater. Recent international highlights include recitals in France at the famed Piano aux Jacobins, in Toulouse; performances with the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra at the Cartagena International Music Festival; and an all-Haydn recital tour of China.

Danni Lee Parpan is a multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter based in Portland, OR. Her latest album, Truth Teller, explores distorted electric tenor ukulele and pushes the boundaries of how instruments are “supposed” to be played. Known for her high-energy live performances and witty stage banter, Danni Lee’s shows have been described as equal parts stand-up comedy and live music. Whether you laugh, cry, or do both, her emotionally charged lyrics will stick with you for weeks.

In addition to her solo work, Danni Lee is also one half of Ringdown, an electronic cinematic pop duo with acclaimed composer Caroline Shaw. As Matthew Neil Andrews of Oregon ArtsWatch notes, “Parpan’s voice is dynamite–and a perfect complement to Shaw’s.” Together, they create a blend of haunting melodies and innovative soundscapes, and have quickly become a highly anticipated creative force.

Praised for her "fluid and graceful style," Moriah Trenk has performed as a soloist and with ensembles at venues and concert series including Bargemusic, Candlelight Concerts by Fever, Jordan Hall, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Weill Recital Hall, Carnegie Hall, Steinway Hall, among other venues. She currently works with New York City Ballet, New York Theatre Ballet, and American Ballet Theatre. She has worked as Company Pianist at Philadelphia Ballet, and has also collaborated with BalletX, Boston Ballet, New Jersey Ballet, and Mark Morris Dance Group. Moriah was recently featured as a performer on WFMT, Chicago’s classical music radio station. She has been selected to record a debut album on Cedille Records, in collaboration with oboist Oliver Talukder.

Moriah has also performed in theater and cabaret productions, including West Side Story, Songs for a New World, and Artemisia LeFay’s ‘Ghosts of Weimar Past’. Moriah has performed outreach concerts with Boston's Volunteer Musicians for the Arts, and was accompanist for The Woman’s Chorus; a social initiative launched by Eureka Ensemble that enables women experiencing homelessness and poverty the opportunity to rehearse and perform in a chorus.

New York based Joel Wenhardt is a jazz pianist, and collaborator. While completing his studies at Juilliard (BM ‘18, MM ‘23) he has become a regular presence on the Jazz scene, as well an active participant in multi-medium productions. He has played or recorded with Paul Simon, Wynton Marsalis, Veronica Swift, Caroline Shaw, Claire Chase, and Brooklyn Rider as well as dancers from Juilliard, NYC Ballet, ABT, Alvin Ailey and more. Currently, he is Musical Directing at the McKittrick Hotel, where he can be found in the Manderley Bar leading The Nightingales. This will be Joel’s 4th time in Vail for the dance festival, and is grateful to call this community his artistic family.

The Canadian-born pianist Tony Siqi Yun, Gold Medalist at the inaugural China International Music Competition (2019) and recipient of the Rheingau Music Festival’s 2023 Lotto-Förderpreis, is rapidly establishing himself as a sought-after soloist and recitalist. Praised as a “poet of the keyboard” (Pianist Magazine), his performances have drawn acclaim for their thrilling artistry and “interpretive flashes that point to an emergent big personality: moments of grandness or deep expressivity” (The Philadelphia Inquirer).

Upcoming recital highlights include debut performances at Het Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Wigmore Hall London, Koerner Hall Toronto, the Ravinia Festival, and Davies Symphony Hall at the San Francisco Symphony. He will also return to the Vancouver Recital Society and Muziekcentrum Ghent in Belgium. Orchestral engagements feature his debut with the Louisville Orchestra under Robert Spano performing Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 3, and a return to the Orchestre Métropolitain with Glass Marcano playing Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3. Recent appearances include performances with the Nashville Symphony, Shanghai Symphony, and New Jersey Symphony, collaborating with conductors Giancarlo Guerrero, Daniel Harding, Jacek Kaspszyk, and Christoph König, among others.

In the 2023–24 season, Mr. Yun made his Carnegie Hall debut with the Orchestre Métropolitain under Yannick Nézet-Séguin, following his 2022–23 debut with The Philadelphia Orchestra. He has also appeared with the Toronto Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, Buffalo Philharmonic, Hamilton Philharmonic, and Rhode Island Philharmonic. Past recital engagements in North America include Stanford Live, La Jolla Music Society, the Gilmore Rising Stars Series, 92nd Street Y (New York), the Vancouver Recital Society, and Friends of Chamber Music Denver. In Europe, he has performed at the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Gewandhaus Leipzig, Tonhalle Düsseldorf, Philharmonie Luxembourg, Muziekcentrum Ghent, among others.

Mr. Yun graduated from The Juilliard School in 2025 and will return as an Artist Diploma candidate. He is a recipient of the Jerome L. Greene Fellowship and studies with Professors Yoheved Kaplinsky and Matti Raekallio.

Acclaimed choreographer Alexei Ratmansky is the Vail Dance Festival's Artist in Residence for the 2026 Festival, marking his first time in Vail to participate in the collaborative multidisciplinary Festival.  Ratmansky's works have been performed in Vail over the last years, including Fandango which was commissioned by the Festival in 2010.

Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, Alexei Ratmansky is of Ukrainian descent and trained at the Bolshoi Ballet School in Moscow prior to becoming a Principal Dancer with the Ukrainian National Ballet, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, and the Royal Danish Ballet. From 2004 to 2008, he was the Artistic Director of the Bolshoi Ballet. He served as Artist in Residence at American Ballet Theatre from 2008 to 2023, and in 2023 became Artist in Residence at New York City Ballet. He is also Associate Artist with Dutch National Ballet, and his work is performed by nearly all major international ballet companies.

Chun Wai Chan is a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet, where he became the company’s first Chinese principal dancer since its founding in 1948. Chan is also the founder of Chunner Studio, a creative platform dedicated to artistic production, education, and cross-cultural collaboration through dance and the arts.

Pam Tanowitz is a NYC-based choreographer. Her company, Pam Tanowitz Dance, has performed at Bard Summerscape festivals (2016, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2025), La Biennale di Venezia, Brooklyn Academy of Music, The Barbican Centre, Lincoln Center and New York City Center.

She has created three ballets for The Royal Ballet and is currently working on a fourth. Other companies that have danced her dances are New York City Ballet, Paul Taylor Dance Company, Martha Graham Dance Company, Miami City Ballet, and Australian Ballet. She has also created dances for Vail Dance Festival and The Juilliard School.

Artistic highlights include Fisher Center at Bard Choreographer-in-Residence (present), Doris Duke Award (2020), LMCC Liberty Award for Artistic Leadership (2022), NYCC Artist at the Center (2023), Jacob’s Pillow Award (2024), Herb Alpert Award (2019), Juilliard Creative Associate (2024, 2025) and Assistant Professor of Professional Practice at Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University (present).

Amanda Treiber is a NYC based choreographer, educator, freelance dance artist, and director of Amanda Treiber + Company. Her choreographic work has been presented by New York Theatre Ballet, Judson Memorial Church, The Little Orchestra Society, Kutztown University, Princeton University, The International Collective, and Battery Dance Festival. Treiber’s work celebrates collaboration across all art forms. She has collaborated with composers Phyllis Chen, Lauren Vandervelden, and Kornel Thomas; Chilean bassist Manuel Figueroa-Bolvarán; and visual artist Marcy Rosenblat. Dance Enthusiast said “Witnessing the blending and melding of people and art was an unforgettable experience, one that left a lasting impression on the audience.”

During her 15 year career as principal dancer with New York Theatre Ballet, she was featured in masterworks by legendary choreographers including Jerome Robbins, Antony Tudor, Agnes DeMille, Merce Cunningham, David Gordon and Jose Limón, and originated roles in premieres by dance luminaries such as Pam Tanowitz, Gemma Bond, Richard Alston and Antonia Franceschi. Additional performance credits include Gemma Bond Dance, Co•Lab Dance, David Gordon’s Pick Up Performance Company, Tom Gold Dance, The International Collective, on television in FX’s Pose, and in Park Avenue Armory's production of De Materie.

(Director & Choreographer) trained at The Royal Ballet School and joined The Royal Ballet in 1991. In 1993, he joined New York City Ballet and was promoted to Soloist in 1998. He was named NYCB’s first Resident Choreographer in July 2001. Since then, Mr. Wheeldon has created and staged productions for many of the world’s major ballet companies: San Francisco Ballet, The Bolshoi Ballet, The Mariinsky Ballet, The Paris Opera Ballet, and Hamburg Ballet among others.

In 2007, Mr. Wheeldon founded Morphoses/The Wheeldon Company and was appointed an Associate Artist for Sadler’s Wells Theatre in London. Mr. Wheeldon now serves as Artistic Associate of The Royal Ballet. He has created many works for the company, including the full-length Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and The Winter’s Tale, both of which were co-productions with The National Ballet of Canada.

In 2012, his ballet Cinderella premiered at Het Nationale Ballet and is making its way to audiences worldwide. For the Metropolitan Opera, he choreographed Dance of the Hour for Ponchielli’s La Gioconda (2006) and Richard Eyre’s production of Carmen (2012) as well as ballet sequences for the feature film Center Stage (2000), the musical Sweet Smell of Success on Broadway (2002), and the finale solo performance in the television series Étoile (2025).

Mr. Wheeldon created a special excerpt for the Closing Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics, and in April 2016, he was the Artistic Director for the Fashion Forward exhibition in Paris at La Musee Arts et Decoratif.

In 2014, Mr. Wheeldon directed and choreographed the Broadway musical version of An American in Paris, which had productions in Paris, New York, and London and has toured extensively through America, China, Japan and Australia. The Joffrey Ballet presented the world premiere in 2016 of The Nutcracker reimagined by Mr. Wheeldon and in 2017 he directed and choreographed Lerner & Loewe’s Brigadoon starring Kelli O’Hara and Patrick Wilson at New York City Center. 2019 saw the premiere of Corybantic Games at The Royal Ballet and a re-staged version of Cinderella for the English National Ballet at Royal Albert Hall. Like Water for Chocolate, a full-length ballet for The Royal Ballet had its premiere in June 2022 and its American premiere with American Ballet Theater in 2023.

Oscar© is his latest full-length ballet for The Australian Ballet which had its premiere in September 2024.

Most recently he directed and choreographed MJ The Musical which opened on Broadway in February 2022, winning four Tony Awards, including Best Choreography award for him. In 2024 MJ The Musical opened in London’s West End earning him the Olivier Award for Best Theatre Choreographer.  It is also touring throughout America, in Hamburg, and began is Australian tour in Sydney in March 2025.

Among Mr. Wheeldon’s other awards are another Tony Award for Best Choreography for An American in Paris, 2 Tony Nominations for Best Director, an Outer Critics Award for Best Choreography and Direction for An American in Paris, the Martin E. Segal Award from Lincoln Center, the American Choreography Award, the Dance Magazine Award, South Bank Show Award, multiple London Critics’ Circle Awards, and the Léonide Massine Prize for new choreography. Mr. Wheeldon’s productions of Cinderella and The Winter’s Tale received the Benois de la Danse, and he is an Olivier Award winner for his ballet Aeternum for The Royal Ballet and Polyphonia for Morphoses.

In 2016, Mr. Wheeldon was named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) and was made an Honorary Fellow of American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Christopher is a dual citizen of the United States and the United Kingdom and resides in New York City with his husband, Ross Rayburn, and their dogs, Hattie and Theo.