BALANCHINE: A PANEL DISCUSSION
Tamara Rojo and Elizabeth Kendall in discussion with James Steichen
Join us before the opening night of Balanchine–Father of American Ballet for a special panel discussion with Artistic Director Tamara Rojo and Elizabeth Kendall, author of Balanchine Finds His America: A Tale of Love Lost & Ballet Reborn and Balanchine and the Lost Muse: Revolution and the Making of a Choreographer.
Moderated by James Steichen, author of Balanchine and Kirstein’s American Enterprise.
DATE: Tuesday, February 10, 2026
TIME: 6:00–6:45pm
LOCATION: War Memorial Opera House. Enter from the North Carriage Entrance.
TICKETS: The panel discussion is free and open to the public, with general seating in the orchestra level. Tickets are not required to attend the panel discussion from 6:00–6:45pm. A valid ticket is required to stay for the performance at 7:30pm.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
James Steichen, Moderator
James Steichen is the author of Balanchine and Kirstein’s American Enterprise and a former Visiting Scholar for SFB. He has given lectures for the School of American Ballet and was a featured guest on the podcast The Turning: Room of Mirrors. His writing has appeared in the Times Literary Supplement, The Nation, and The Chronicle of Higher Education. Born and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he received a BA from the University of Virginia and holds an MA in Humanities from the University of Chicago and a PhD in musicology from Princeton University. His work has been supported by fellowships from the Fulbright program, the American Council of Learned Societies, the Society for American Music, and the Houghton Library at Harvard University. He was a quarterfinalist in the 1999 Jeopardy! Teen Tournament. He works at Stanford University and lives in San Francisco.
Tamara Rojo, Artistic Director
Tamara Rojo is a celebrated leader and principal dancer who was appointed Artistic Director of San Francisco Ballet in December 2022. Previously, she served as Artistic Director and Lead Principal of London’s English National Ballet (ENB) for ten and a half years, where she implemented groundbreaking programming and garnered the company accolades.
Rojo has a depth of experience through her 30-year career. Prior to her directorship at ENB, she was principal dancer of The Royal Ballet. Her acclaimed dance repertoire includes lead roles in all full-length ballet classics, as well as works by Balanchine, Robbins, Ashton, and MacMillan.
She has received numerous awards, including the Olivier Award for Best Achievement in Dance for ENB’s repertoire in 2017 and the Principe de Asturias Award in 2005. In 2016, she was made a Commander of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II for her services to dance. Rojo is also a 2021 Dance Magazine Award honoree.
Elizabeth Kendall, Guest Speaker