Ben Stevenson (dancer)

Ben Stevenson OBE (born 4 April 1936), is a former ballet dancer with Britain's Royal Ballet and English National Ballet, co-director of National Ballet of Washington, D.C. (1971–1974), artistic director of Chicago Ballet (1974-1975), artistic director of Houston Ballet (1976–2003), and artistic director of Texas Ballet Theater (2003–2022).

Early life

A native of Portsmouth, England, Stevenson received his dance training at the Arts Educational School in London. Upon his graduation, he was awarded the prestigious Adeline Genée Gold Medal, the highest award give to a dancer by the Royal Academy of Dancing.

Career

At the age of 18, Stevenson was invited to join the Sadler's Wells Royal Ballet by Dame Ninette de Valois. A few years later, Anton Dolin invited him to dance with the London Festival Ballet, where, as a principal dancer, he performed leading roles in all the classics.

In 1967, the English National Ballet asked him to stage his first ballet, the highly successful production of The Sleeping Beauty, which starred Dame Margot Fonteyn. A year after staging the ballet in England, Stevenson arrived in the United States, lending his vast talents and experience to productions across the country. At the request of Rebekah Harkness, he journeyed to New York where he assumed the position of Artistic Director of the Harkness Ballet.

After choreographing Cinderella in 1970 for the National Ballet of Washington, D.C., he joined the company in 1971 as co-director with Frederic Franklin. That same year, he staged a new production of The Sleeping Beauty in observance of the inaugural season of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

After a brief association with Ruth Page's Chicago Ballet, in 1976, Stevenson was appointed artistic director of the Houston Ballet, which he developed into one of America's leading ballet companies. During his tenure, he expanded the company's repertory by acquiring the works of the world's most respected choreographers, commissioning new works, staging the classics and choreographing original works.

During this time as artistic director of America's fifth-biggest ballet company, and when Barbara Bush was a trustee of the company, in 1978 Stevenson visited Beijing and offered the Chinese dancer, Li Cunxin a six-week scholarship to America and later on his defection, offered him a position with the company. Cunxin returned where he danced at the gala at Stevenson's retirement after 27 years with the Houston Ballet.

Stevenson has been called "a master of the traditional story ballet." He's choreographed in Paris and Beijing, the National Ballet at the Kennedy Center, the Joffrey Ballet in New York, and La Scala in Milan, among other locations. He worked with Margot Fonteyn, one of the 20th century's great ballerinas. He taught Jane Seymour dance when the Hollywood star was 13.

In 2003, he was named Director Emeritus of Houston Ballet and the company's academy was renamed the Ben Stevenson Academy.

In July 2003, Stevenson accepted the position of artistic director of Texas Ballet Theater in Fort Worth. As the longest-serving artistic director in Texas Ballet Theater history, Stevenson has been instrumental in elevating Texas Ballet Theater (TBT) from a regional troupe to an internationally acclaimed ensemble. Since joining TBT, he has established himself as a prominent member of the local arts community, demonstrating his commitment to the future of ballet through education, collaboration, and his artistic vision.

In 2022, Stevenson was named Artistic Director Laureate in recognition of his lengthy tenure. Stevenson was succeeded as Artistic Director by Tim O'Keefe.

In the Bruce Beresford 2009 film Mao's Last Dancer, Stevenson was portrayed by Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood.

Awards

Stevenson has received numerous awards for his choreography, including three gold medals at the Varna International Ballet Competitions of 1972, 1982, and 1986. In addition, he has staged his ballets for the Harkness Ballet, English National Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, the Paris Opera Ballet, La Scala in Milan, Rome Opera House, the Munich State Opera Ballet, The Joffrey Ballet, London City Ballet, Ballet de Santiago, The Perm State P. I. Tchaikovsky Opera and Ballet Theatre and for many companies in the United States.

For his contributions to international dance, Mr. Stevenson was named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (O.B.E.) by Queen Elizabeth II in December 1999. In April 2000, he was presented with the Dance Magazine Award. In 2018, Stevenson was acknowledged by the Chinese government as one of the most influential Foreign Experts in the past 40 years since China initiated its policy on Reform and Opening Up.