Washington Ballet’s Edwaard Liang to Speak at May 16 Breakfast
By • April 25, 2024 0 704
Choreographer Edwaard Liang, who became the Washington Ballet’s fourth artistic director last fall, will be the featured speaker at The Georgetowner’s May 16 cultural breakfast. Admission to the event, at Georgetown’s historic Evermay estate, 1623 28th St. NW, is $40, payable in advance via Eventbrite.
Artistic director of BalletMet in Columbus, Ohio, from 2013 to 2023, Liang has also choreographed for Houston Ballet, the Joffrey Ballet, New York City Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, San Francisco Ballet and the Washington Ballet, for which he created five works presented between 2008 and 2016. Abroad, he has choreographed for the Bolshoi in Moscow, the Mariinsky (formerly Kirov) in Saint Petersburg, the Shanghai Ballet and Singapore Ballet (formerly Dance Theatre).
Born in Taiwan and raised in California, Liang studied at New York City Ballet’s School of American Ballet, joined the company in 1993 and after five years was promoted to soloist. He later performed in the Broadway cast of “Fosse” and became a member of the Nederlands Dans Theater 1 in The Hague.
Founded by Mary Day as a ballet school in 1944, the Washington Ballet became a professional company in 1976. Liang’s predecessor, former American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Julie Kent, served as artistic director from 2016 to 2023, when she became Houston Ballet’s co-artistic director.
Since 2014, The Georgetowner has presented 57 insider talks by leaders of area museums, theater and dance companies, performing arts venues and other cultural organizations.
Gates open at Evermay at 8:25 a.m. on Thursday, May 16, for a buffet breakfast; the program will follow from 9 to 10 a.m. Parking is available, but attendees are encouraged to use ride-share apps or public transportation (Metrorail to Dupont Circle or D2 Metrobus).
