Lincoln Center’s summer-long celebration of dance continues in July as the BAAND Together Dance Festival returns for its sixth year, reuniting five of NYC’s most iconic dance companies – Ballet Hispánico New York, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, and Dance Theatre of Harlem – on one stage from July 28-August 1, 2026 at the David H. Koch Theater as part of Lincoln Center’s Summer for the City.
This beloved festival offers the rare chance to experience programming curated collaboratively by the artistic directors of each company, including repertory favorites. The Festival began when the performing arts were coming back after the height of the pandemic in 2021 as a new form of collaboration in celebration of the return to live performance.
For the second year, audiences will get an off-stage perspective of the extraordinary creative collaboration between these five renowned NYC dance companies during a free panel discussion on Tuesday, July 28 at 5:00pm in the David Rubenstein Atrium, featuring the artistic leaders of all five companies: Eduardo Vilaro, Ballet Hispánico New York; Alicia Graf Mack and Matthew Rushing, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater; Susan Jaffe, American Ballet Theatre; Wendy Whelan and Jonathan Stafford, New York City Ballet; and Robert Garland, Dance Theatre of Harlem, moderated by Donald Borror, Director, Pasculano Collaborative for Contemporary Dance.
Each afternoon, one of the companies brings its unique teaching style to participants of all ages with free dance workshops in the David Geffen Hall lobby. The series will offer a variety of dance forms, appropriate for all ages and abilities.
“Dance and the arts are a haven for our collective soul, reminding us of our shared humanity. BAAND was created to foster resilience, strengthen community, and demonstrate the power of the arts to inspire change. As we enter our sixth year, we celebrate a city that continues to show the strength and possibility of coming together,” said the BAAND Artistic Directors in a joint statement.
Continuing the festival’s celebration of major U.S. companies and contemporary choreographic voices, this year’s BAAND Together program at Lincoln Center’s Summer in the City brings together new works and repertory highlights from five leading ensembles.
American Ballet Theatre presents Zephyr pas de deux by corps de ballet dancer Claire Davison, a duet inspired by a gentle summer breeze drawn from Jacques Offenbach’s Barcarolle. Evoking wind, play, and fleeting romance, the work captures a moment of movement and magic on a warm summer night.
Dance Theatre of Harlem offers Passage of Being by Jodie Gates, a three-part work exploring life’s transience through shifting perspectives and physicality. Set to music by Oscar-nominated composer Ryan Lott (Everything Everywhere All at Once), the ballet features lighting by Michael Korsch and costumes by Martha Chamberlain, with the haunting Son Lux track “Don’t Say It’s Too Late” at its core.
New York City Ballet performs Each In Their Own Time by Lar Lubovitch, set to selections from Brahms’ Eight Piano Pieces (Op. 76) performed live onstage. Originally created for Fall for Dance Festival 2021, the duet marks Lubovitch’s second work in NYCB’s repertory.
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater presents A Case of You by Judith Jamison (1943–2024), a sensual duet set to Diana Krall’s rendition of Joni Mitchell’s classic song. First shown in 2005 within Reminiscin’, the work reflects Jamison’s inspiration from Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks and the legacy of women in jazz.
Ballet Hispánico closes the program with Trança (Braid) by Cassi Abranches, a recent world premiere exploring individuality and community through the metaphor of braiding, weaving Brazilian cultural influences into a dynamic portrait of identity and connection.
Performances will take place Tuesday, July 28 – Friday, July 31 at 7:30pm, and Saturday, August 1 at 4pm. To make the arts more accessible, tickets are available on a Choose-What-You-Pay basis here starting at $5.
More information can be found at SummerForTheCity.org.
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