We wanted to talk with performers who will be part of YAGP Gala and caught up with ABT’s Christine Shevchenko and Calvin Royal III.
AM: When did you first fall in love with ballet?
CHRISTINE SHEVCHENKO: I vividly remember falling in love with ballet at the age of four. My mother took me backstage to see “The Sleeping Beauty.” A friend of hers was performing as a prima ballerina in Ukraine, and the show was quite lengthy - about three hours. I stood mesmerized in the wings, captivated by the music, costumes, lighting, and the enchanting story unfolding before me.
CALVIN ROYAL III: I came to ballet a bit later than most, at fourteen. At first, it was a curiosity more than anything, but I fell in love with the discipline, the music, and the feeling of discovering something I didn’t know I was capable of.
AM: When did you realize that you wanted to be a ballerina and to do it as a career?
CS: I realized I wanted to be a professional ballerina when I was around eleven. That was when things started to click for me, and I began truly enjoying my dance journey. Ballet consumed my thoughts; even in school, my mind would wander to ballet classes and rehearsals.
CR III: When I started training seriously and saw how much growth was possible, I realized this could be more than just a hobby. Being introduced to opportunities like YAGP, summer intensives, and eventually a scholarship to the ABT School made it that much more real. That this could actually be a path forward.
AM: What does it mean to you to dance for ABT and is there a specific performance that you are excited about that you will do this Spring or Summer season?
CS: Dancing for ABT means the world to me. This has been my dream company ever since I admired legends like Baryshnikov and Makarova, as well as the extensive classical repertoire they offer. I’m particularly thrilled to perform “Don Quixote” again this season; it’s one of my beloved ballets. Additionally, I’m eagerly anticipating my role in “Onegin.”
CR III: Dancing with ABT has been one of the defining chapters of my life. It’s where I grew up, both as an artist and as a person from student to Principal dancer over the years. There’s a deep sense of responsibility in carrying forward the company’s legacy while also finding my own voice within it. This season, I’m looking forward to exploring roles that challenge me both technically and emotionally, and allow me to deepen my artistry. I’m constantly searching for ways to bring meaning and sincerity to the stage every time the curtain goes up.
AM: Why is YAGP so important to ballet?
CS: YAGP plays a crucial role in the ballet world because it offers life-changing opportunities for young dancers to be noticed by some of the most influential figures in the industry. It fosters resilience and confidence, provides invaluable stage experience, and creates lasting friendships.
CR III: YAGP creates access. It’s a platform that opened doors for myself and thousands of young dancers, for decades, who may not otherwise have a clear path into the professional world. I see it as a program that continues to shape the next generation by connecting talent with opportunity on a global scale.
AM: What are you looking forward to for this year’s 2026 Stars of Today Meets the Stars of Tomorrow Gala?
CS: I am excited to perform alongside world-class dancers who are also friends, and to inspire a new generation of dancers to chase their dreams.
CR III: There’s something really special about bringing together established artists and young dancers on the same stage. I’ll never forget being an aspiring dancer looking up to the pros. Returning this year feels full circle, and a reminder of the continuum of this art form. I’m looking forward to that exchange of energy and inspiration when the curtain rises at Lincoln Center next month.
IG @christineshevchenko
IG @calvinroyaliii
This year’s auctioned pointe shoe designs are those that we are excited about as mentioned by Marcella. Libby Klein is also contributing a design at this year’s Gala. We wanted to know more about her aesthetic and why she wanted to participate.
AM: How would you describe your work’s aesthetic?
LIBBY KLEIN: My work is rooted in beauty, but not surface-level beauty. It is layered, intentional, and deeply symbolic.
I am a mother of six, and that shapes everything I create. Every day I am balancing two worlds, art and home. Being a mother is not something separate from my work. It is part of it.
I lost my father at a young age, and that gave me a different relationship with life early on. I learned to notice what is fragile, what is meaningful, and what truly lasts. I also come from a family built on tradition and entrepreneurship, the Reichmans, where creating and building something lasting was always part of our foundation.
Alongside that, I was deeply influenced by my great-grandmother. She carried a quiet strength and an understanding that being a woman is not only about what you give to others, but also what you create from within yourself. That stayed with me.
So I built a life where both could exist. I am raising a family, and I am also an artist. I never saw those as separate roles.
My work reflects that balance. It holds beauty and responsibility, softness and strength, tradition and growth. It is not about escaping life, it is about taking everything life gives you and turning it into something meaningful.
I am drawn to blending old and new, preserving tradition while allowing it to evolve. You will see that in my work through delicate, timeless compositions, florals, birds, and natural elements, each one placed with intention.
So the aesthetic is beauty, but beauty with depth, with story, and with purpose.
AM: Where do you look for inspiration when it comes to creating new pieces?
LK: I look at my life.
My children, my home, and the way I choose to see the world, even when it is not simple, especially when it is not simple.
I have always believed that you can either focus on what is broken, or you can choose to find the beauty within it. That choice is where my work comes from.
I create from that perspective. I want to bring into the world the beauty that I see. I want people to feel something when they look at my work, to see light, to see hope, to see something good.
A lot of that is rooted in the power of women. In motherhood, in creation, in the quiet strength that women carry every single day. There is something incredibly powerful about being a woman, about holding so much, building so much, and still choosing softness. That balance inspires me constantly.
If someone can walk away from a piece and feel even a little more grounded, a little more inspired, or simply reminded that there is still beauty in the world, then I have done what I set out to do.
At the end of the day, it is about making the world feel a little brighter, a little softer, and a little more whole.
AM: Why did you want to be involved in the 2026 Stars of Today Meets the Stars of Tomorrow Gala?
LK: As a mother of six, this felt deeply personal to me.
I understand how important it is to nurture talent and to give children a space to grow, to express themselves, and to believe in what they are capable of. Life is not always easy, but when a child is given the opportunity to create, to move, and to be seen, it can shape everything.
This gala represents that. It is not just about performance, it is about possibility.
Being part of something that uplifts the next generation, that gives young dancers a platform and a sense of belief in themselves, is incredibly meaningful to me.
It aligns with everything I value, family, growth, resilience, and the ability to create something beautiful even through challenge.
AM: Tell us about the pointe shoes that you designed that will be auctioned off on this night?
LK: I chose to center the design around the poppy flower because its symbolism really spoke to me. There is something about the poppy. It represents hope, renewal, and resilience how something can grow and bloom even after difficulty. The more I thought about it, the more it felt so connected to ballet.
I also felt a personal connection to it. I grew up in Israel, and this kind of flower is deeply tied to the land. It carries a quiet message of strength, of healing, and of the idea that even in places that have seen so much, beauty can still grow.
What you see on stage is beautiful, but what it takes to get there is not easy. It is repetition, pressure, setbacks, and still choosing to get back up and keep going. That is the poppy to me.
The red carries that strength. It is soft, but it is not weak. That duality feels very feminine to me, the idea that softness and strength exist together.
I added a young bambi into the design because it felt like these dancers, at the beginning of something, still growing, still stepping into who they are becoming.
The butterflies bring a sense of transformation, that everything is constantly unfolding.
And the bees are something very personal to me. There is this idea that a bee should not be able to fly, but because it does not know its limitations, it does anyway. That reflects how I see life as a mother and as an artist, and it is something I see in these dancers as well.
So the shoes are not just decorative. They are a reflection of that whole journey, of becoming, of pushing through, and of finding beauty in it all, and a quiet hope for more unity, peace, and beauty in the world.
AM: Are there any upcoming projects or things we should keep an eye out for?
LK: Lately, I’ve been working on a collection that feels very close to me, the Glow Collection. It really comes from the idea that light doesn’t always come easily, sometimes it’s something you find after moving through darker moments. That kind of beauty, the kind that is built, not given, is something I’ve come to appreciate more over time.
I’ve also been involved in different fundraising efforts and creating pieces that support women, including work around breast cancer awareness. That part of what I do is very important to me, making sure the art gives back and reaches beyond itself.
IG @libbykleinart
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | YAGP
