Scholarship Support at the School of American Ballet
Throughout its 90-year history, the School of American Ballet has played a crucial role in shaping the careers of generations of young dancers, helping talented students from around the world achieve their dreams of performing on the professional stage. Underpinning this legacy is the School’s continued dedication to providing essential scholarship support to students who lack the financial means to pursue the level of training they need. In the earlier years, many scholarships were underwritten personally by School co-founder Lincoln Kirstein, whose passion for ballet and young artists inspired boundless philanthropy. Today, this core aspect of our mission has been strengthened a thousand-fold with the establishment of our Scholarship Fund, which covers student expenses such as tuition, room and board, and other comprehensive resources like pointe shoes, travel, performance tickets, and more. This fund is essential to fulfilling SAB’s commitment to recruiting students from diverse backgrounds and ensuring they have the financial support to attend the School. In the past year, SAB awarded over $1.6 million in scholarships and financial aid to nearly one-third of its student population. This would not be possible without the support of our generous donors.
During our Fall Advisory Council meeting, we had the privilege of hosting two former scholarship recipients, SAB faculty member and former NYCB Soloist Arch Higgins (SAB ‘82- ’89) and NYCB Soloist KJ Takahashi (SAB ‘16-’19). Their stories speak to the necessity of student scholarships in ensuring our aspiring young dancers have the tools they need to pursue their dreams.
Here’s what they had to say…
Can you talk about your time at SAB and what the scholarship meant to you?
Arch – “I attended my first Summer Course in the summer of ‘82 and wouldn’t have been able to come to New York without the scholarship. I attended five years of the Summer Course and three years of the Winter Term. My experience at the School was incredible. It was quite different back then…we have so many [more] programs and resources for our students [now]. [But] Mikhail Baryshnikov and Rudolf Nureyev would take class with us. It was just amazing.”
KJ – “When I first came to SAB, I didn’t take ballet very seriously. But once I got here and saw the potential and beauty of this art form, it drove me to want to become a [professional] ballet dancer. It wouldn’t have happened without my scholarship, and I’ll always be grateful for it. My time at the School was great. Being surrounded by so many inspiring dancers and having company dancers come to take class with us was great motivation to work even harder.”
Who were some of your inspirations when you were studying here?
Arch – “Some of my inspirations were Stanley Williams for the purity of technique and distillation. Also, Suki Schorer, who still teaches here, impressed me with the largeness and musicality of her movement. Both had a significant impact on my thinking, and sometimes I have to remind myself to simplify and go back to what they taught me.”
KJ – “Arch was one of my teachers and had a great impact. He taught me a lot about sharpness but also the fluidity of Balanchine’s dancing. Jonathan Stafford taught me a lot about partnering and emphasized that it’s not about the solo dancer but making dancing with another person look good. Also, Andrei Kramarevsky was one of my favorite instructors for the freedom he encouraged in his class. Even now, I sometimes take class at the School, and the faculty continues to offer something new to learn.”
What were your favorite pieces to perform with New York City Ballet, and what was your most memorable role?
Arch – “I would say Agon was definitely a highlight for me as well as the Emeralds pas de deux, which KJ now performs. Those were two of my favorites. I also had the opportunity to work with Jerome Robbins before he passed, and that was special.”
KJ – “Alexei Ratmansky’s Concerto DSCH is one of my favorite pieces. During the digital 2020 spring season, I got hooked on the company’s performance of it. When I saw it was returning this season, I said, ‘I have to be in this piece.’ As for originating, surprisingly, it was a corps role that I originated in Alysa Pires’s Standard Deviation. It was really fun, with a lot of structure and forms in the performance, which worked well with my attention to detail.”
Arch Higgins
Born in California, Mr. Higgins began studying dance at the age of eight at Berkeley Ballet Theater, where his teachers included Janet Carole and former NYCB dancer Sally Streets. From the ages of 12 to 16, he attended five consecutive Summer Courses at the School of American Ballet before enrolling as a full-time student in the fall of 1986. In 1989, he received SAB’s Mae L. Wien Award for Outstanding Promise and was invited by Peter Martins to join New York City Ballet as a member of the corps de ballet that same year. Mr. Higgins was promoted to the rank of Soloist in 1998. He joined SAB’s faculty in 2010 and retired from performing in 2011. In addition to teaching at SAB, Mr. Higgins has been Associate Children’s Repertory Director at New York City Ballet since the fall of 2013.
KJ Takahashi
Born in Dallas, Texas, Mr. Takahashi began his ballet training at the age of eight at Ballet Academy of Texas under the direction of Lisa Slagle. In 2014, he studied ballet at Mejia Ballet International under the direction of Paul Mejia and in 2015, he began training at Ballet Tech under the direction of Elliot Feld. He entered the School of American Ballet in 2016 and received additional training at summer courses at the Pacific Northwest Ballet School. Mr. Takahashi was named an apprentice with New York City Ballet in 2019 and, as an apprentice, he performed featured roles in George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker® (Candy Cane, Tea) and Lauren Lovette’s The Shaded Line.
Mr. Takahashi joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet in August 2021 and was promoted to Soloist in April 2023.