ARTISTS
Ballet Neo brings together a gifted ensemble of dancers and collaborators, each contributing their unique voice to the company’s evolving vision. While our artistic team continues to grow and change, our core values remain rooted in excellence, collaboration, and storytelling. We are committed to exploring the classical ballet vocabulary through contemporary narratives and inclusive perspectives, fostering a rehearsal culture that champions curiosity, rigor, and mutual respect.

LUDMILA RAIANOVA
Ballet Coach

LONNE MORETTON
Repetiteur

JOHN THOMAS
Visual Design

TEMPLE KEMEZIS RATZENBOECK
Dancer Collaborator

ADELE ROBBINS
Repertory Coach

ROYCE ZACKERY
Repertory Coach- Founding Member

TOMIKO MAGARIO
Repertory Coach Founding Member

ROBERT JOHNSTON
IN MEMORY
Dancers We Love to Work With
At Ballet Neo, we are inspired by dancers who bring not only technical precision and artistry, but also openness, curiosity, and a collaborative spirit. We value performers who are eager to explore new ideas, challenge tradition with integrity, and contribute meaningfully to the creative process. Whether seasoned professionals or emerging talents, the dancers we work with help shape Ballet Neo’s unique voice—infusing our work with depth, vulnerability, and a sense of shared purpose

MICHELLE JOY

BRIAN GEPHARDT

ALEJANDRA GARCIA

KAREL HERNÁNDEZ CHAPELIN

DANNYS GONZALEZ

ROBERT O. BELGER

ATHINA KLIRONOMOU

TEMPLE KEMEZIS

ADELE ROBBINS

KATE THOMAS
Artistic Director
Kate Thomas, Artistic Director of Ballet Neo, creates contemporary ballets with mature narratives ranging from deeply emotional personal stories to intricate interpretations of various music. Her choreographic work explores a broad spectrum of sophisticated themes: intimacy, loneliness, classical storytelling, and nuanced responses to experimental sound. Thomas believes that mining the classical ballet vocabulary to express expansive aspects of the human experience ensures the form’s continued relevance for current and future generations. Ballet Neo celebrates the technical aesthetics of classical ballet while exploring its potential as a powerful expressive tool. The company has performed at venues including the Danny Kaye Theater, the 92nd Street Y, Ailey Citigroup Theater, Downtown Dance Festival, APAP, New Choreographers on Pointe, Dancers Responding to AIDS, The Brooklyn Dance Festival, and MMAC. Ballet Neo’s youth program, Ballet Neo Young Professionals (BNYP), launched in July 2024 with Summer Workshops at New York Live Arts in NYC. In June 2024, Thomas received a CUNY Dance Initiative residency at Aaron Davis Hall to develop The Heroinez Journey—a project investigating the classical ballet lexicon through a non-binary and gender-inclusive lens. Inspired by Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey, the work affirms that heroism, personal growth, and transformation transcend traditional binary gender roles. In Spring 2025, Thomas was commissioned by Columbia Ballet Collaborative to create a new ballet for its Gala performance.