Last night, Artistic Director Jonathan Stafford and Associate Artistic Director Wendy Whelan announced that 6 dancers at New York City Ballet were promoted from the corps de ballet to soloist.
At a meeting held just one week before the Fall season comes to a close, leadership presented the news to Victor Abreu, Dominika Afanasenkov, India Bradley, Naomi Corti, Mary Thomas MacKinnon, and Andres Zuniga that they would be the newest soloists in the company.
Their debuts in featured roles this season were recognized:
- Victor Abreu danced in George Balanchine’s Western Symphony (second movement) and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Demetrius), and Jamar Roberts’ Foreseeable Future;
- Dominika Afanasenkov danced in Balanchine’s Episodes (Concerto), Apollo (Calliope), and Errante, Jerome Robbins’ The Goldberg Variations, Gianna Reisen’s Signs, and Justin Peck’s Heatscape;
- India Bradley danced in Balanchine’s Episodes (Symphony), Tschaikovsky Suite No. 3 (Scherzo), and La Valse, and Kyle Abraham’s When We Fell;
- Naomi Corti danced in Balanchine’s Swan Lake (Valse Bluette), Peck’s Heatscape, Roberts’ Foreseeable Future, and Alexei Ratmansky’s Voices;
- Mary Thomas MacKinnon danced in Balanchine’s Swan Lake (Valse Bluette) and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Hippolyta), and Ratmansky’s Paquita (soloist);
- Andres Zuniga danced in Robbins’ The Goldberg Variations and Balanchine’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Lysander) and La Valse (first waltz).
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6 Dancers at New York City Ballet Promoted to Soloist
Victor Abreu was born in New York City and began his training at the age of 10 at New York Theatre Ballet under Diana Byer. He attended the summer course at the School of American Ballet, NYCB’s official school, in 2014 and 2015 before entering SAB full-time for the 2015 winter term.
In January 2019, Abreu was named an apprentice with NYCB and in May 2019 he joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet.
Abreu is the 2025 Janice Levin Award honoree at NYCB and was the recipient of the 2022 Clive Barnes Award in Dance. Abreu is featured in the award-winning documentary film LIFT (2022), directed by David Petersen, as a student at New York Theatre Ballet.
Dominika Afanasenkov was born in Tampa, Florida, and began her ballet training at age two locally. She continued her studies in Russia and Switzerland before entering the Academy of Ballet Arts in St. Petersburg, Florida under Suzanne Pomerantzeff at age 10. She received additional training at Next Generation Ballet under Philip Neal and Ivonne Lemus in Tampa.
Afanasenkov attended the summer course at the School of American Ballet in 2018 before enrolling full-time at SAB for the 2018 winter term.
Afanasenkov became an apprentice with NYCB in January 2022 and joined the corps de ballet in November 2022.
India Bradley was born in Detroit, Michigan and began her dance training at the age of four at The Link School of the Arts in Troy, Michigan. At the age of 11, she continued her studies at the Academy of Russian Classical Ballet in Novi, Michigan, under the direction of Sergey Rayevitskey. Bradley attended the summer program at Dance Theatre of Harlem in 2012 and entered DTH’s Professional Training Program under the direction of Andrea Long that fall.
Bradley attended the 2014 summer course at the School of American Ballet and enrolled as a full-time student at SAB later that year. She was named an apprentice with NYCB in August 2017 at which time she performed Dolls Balanchine’s The Nutcracker. She joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet in August 2018.
Naomi Corti was born in Luxembourg and began her dance training at the age of three at L’école de danse Marie-France Ceschel in Menton, France. In 2009, she began training at the California Dance Theater in Agoura Hills, California under Kim Maselli.
She attended the 2014 summer course at the School of American Ballet and joined SAB full-time for the winter term that year.
Corti became an apprentice with NYCB in August 2018 during which she performed a featured role in William Forsythe’s Herman Schmerman and originated a corps role in Gianna Reisen’s Judah.
She joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet in August 2019.
Mary Thomas MacKinnon was born in Mobile, Alabama and began her dance training at the age of three at the Mobile Ballet.
MacKinnon enrolled as a full-time student at the School of American Ballet in 2014. She became an apprentice with NYCB in August 2017 and joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet in August 2018.
Andres Zuniga was born in Mexico City, Mexico and began his dance training at the age of 13 at Danza Tellez in Los Cabos, Mexico under the direction of Lourdes Tellez. In 2014, he began training at The Rock School for Dance Education.
He attended the 2015 summer course at the School of American Ballet before entering SAB full-time the following winter term.
In August 2017, he became an apprentice with NYCB which is when he performed a featured role in Jerome Robbins’ Les Noces and originated a corps de ballet role in Gianna Reisen’s Composer’s Holiday.
Zuniga joined NYCB as a member of the corps de ballet in August 2018.
Featured Photo of New York City Ballet‘s India Bradley in George Balanchine’s Tschaikovsky Suite No. 3. Photo by Erin Baiano.
