About Russell Janzen

New York, NY

Russell Janzen (CBA ’19) grew up outside of Philadelphia. He started dance lessons at the Rock School for Dance Education, and then later moved to New York City to attend the School of American Ballet. After graduating high school, he joined the New York City Ballet (NYCB) where he is now a principal dancer. His repertory with NYCB includes works by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Justin Peck, Peter Martins, Christopher Wheeldon, and Benjamin Millepied, among others. He was a Riggio Honors student at the New School for Public Engagement and is interested in exploring art’s participation in larger contemporary conversations.

Stories of Schumann and Dancing (Both Real and Imagined)

At The Center for Ballet and the Arts at NYU, Janzen worked on a written narrative exploring the ballet Robert Schumann’s “Davidsbündlertänze” choreographed by George Balanchine in 1980. The work is made up of Janzen’s conversations with dancers, musicians, and scholars that delve deep into the work, Schumann’s life, and what it means to take on another dancer’s repertoire.