Pittsburgh Ballet artistic director Susan Jaffe leaving for role in New York City

Fresh from debuting her new choreography for “Swan Lake,” Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre artistic director Susan Jaffe has announced that she is leaving the company.

In December, Jaffe will take over as artistic director of New York City-based American Ballet Theatre.

Jaffe, 59, has a long history with ABT, beginning as a student and moving up through dancing, teaching and other roles.

At 18, she was handpicked by ABT artistic director and ballet legend Mikhail Baryshnikov to dance a high-profile role, launching a celebrated career as one of the world’s top ballerinas.

In addition to her 22 years as a principal dancer at ABT, Jaffe danced as a guest with companies like the Royal Ballet, the Kirov, the Stuttgart Ballet, La Scala and many others. She left the stage in 2002.

Jaffe also served for eight years as dean of dance at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

In 2020, Jaffe became the sixth artistic director of PBT since its founding in 1969.

“I have experienced so many iterations of my career at ABT. I was a student, second company member, main company member, teacher in the school, advisor to the chairman and a director of repertoire for this company,” Jaffe said. “However, I wouldn’t have been able to take on this new challenge without everything I accomplished at PBT. It is an outstanding organization.”

Along with “Swan Lake,” which debuted May 6, her achievements with PBT have included:

• Spearheading the creation of collaborative and innovative digital programs during the pandemic, including “Fireside Nutcracker,” which won three Telly Awards

• Launching the “Open Air: A Series in Celebration of the Performing Arts” outdoor festival in 2021, in partnership with PBT Executive Director Harris Ferris, where she debuted “Bolero,” her first original piece of choreography for PBT

• Promoting innovative and classical works by leading choreographers, including a showcase of five female choreographers at “Here + Now” in March

• Launching a collaborative program between Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School and Point Park University in which graduate students of PBT School can earn a bachelor of fine arts degree in dance in two years.

At ABT, Jaffe will succeed Kevin McKenzie as the company’s first new director in 30 years.

Jaffe said her goals at ABT include making ballet more accessible and inclusive, partly by finding ways to recruit a more diverse pool of dancers.

She also will seek to add more modern choreography to the company’s repertoire and to reassess some ballet classics, or parts of those classics, that “may no longer be appropriate for modern sensibilities.”

“For example, a ballet that’s all about slavery and the enslavement of women maybe might not be something we want to save,” she said, referring to “Le Corsaire,” a traditional favorite whose characters include slaves and slave dealers.

“With her experience at UNCSA and PBT, Susan comes equipped with her own expertise and the ability to get the best out of those around her,” said McKenzie, who is retiring at the end of the season. “She’s a colleague I admire who always maintained a sense of joy and fun. She is a wonderful teacher and coach, bringing the experience of an extensive and acclaimed performing career, working under three directors while at ABT.”

“We are grateful for the contributions Susan has made to PBT,” said PBT Board Chair Mary McKinney Flaherty. “I look forward to working with the executive search committee to identify the next artistic director.”