Michelle Wiles

American Ballet Theatre/Alumni 1997

Michele Wiles is Artistic Director of BalletNext, a New York City based ballet company producing new choreography, en-pointe to live music. Prior to BalletNext, Michele was a Principal Dancer with American Ballet Theater.

Born in Baltimore, Maryland, Michele received her early training in Washington, D.C. At the age of ten, she received a full scholarship to the Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington, D.C. where she studied from 1991 to 1997. Michele also participated in the summer programs at The Joffrey Ballet and The Royal Ballet before joining American Ballet Theatre's Studio Company in 1997.

Michele joined American Ballet Theatre in 1998 and was promoted to Soloist in 2000 and to Principal Dancer in 2005. Her roles with the Company include Polyhymnia in Apollo, Gamzatti and a Shade in La Bayadère, the Fairy Godmother and the Winter Fairy in Ben Stevenson's Cinderella, Aurora in Coppélia, Medora and an Odalisque in Le Corsaire, Kitri, Queen of the Driads and a flower girl in Don Quixote, Hermia in The Dream, Moyna in Giselle, Grand Pas Classique, His Experiences in HereAfter, Lescaut’s Mistress in Manon, the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Snow Queen in The Nutcracker, Hagar in Pillar of Fire, the Siren in Prodigal Son, Raymonda and Clemence in Raymonda, Princess Aurora and Lilac Fairy in The Sleeping Beauty, Odette-Odile, the pas de trois and the Polish Princess in Swan Lake, Ceres and the title role in Sylvia, the fourth movement in Symphony in C, the pas de six in The Taming of the Shrew, the Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, and leading roles in Baker's Dozen, Ballet Imperial, Ballo della Regina, Black Tuesday, The Brahms-Haydn Variations, Dark Elegies, Diversion of Angels, Drink To Me Only With Thine Eyes, Études, Glow - Stop, In The Upper Room, The Leaves Are Fading, Marimba, Petite Mort, Sinfonietta, Symphonie Concertante, Theme and Variations and workwithinwork.

Apart from starting her own dance company after retiring from American Ballet Theater, Michele Wiles has also focused on philanthropy - she has been doing charity work for the YMCA. In her interview with Fairweather Magazine (2016), she talked about her incredible experience. To read the full article, click here.

"Reporter: I saw that you regularly work with YMCA to teach some of their young members ballet. What has been some of the most meaningful charity work you've done?

Michelle: YMCA has been my heart for the past 5 years. I fell in love with the dancers from PS 54 and with the Tiny Toes [program], it doesn't get any better. I've recently taught at 51st Academy for the COMPASS after school program. One of the boys said, "I thought dance was only for girls, but l was wrong," which melted my heart! You realize in those moments that you are changing lives.

Reporter: How did your partnership with the YMCA come about?

Michelle: In 2010, I was given an Arts and Letter award at the YMCA Gala at the Time Warner building. They were honoring me for my work, and it was amazing. Then I was introduced to the program, Tiny Toes, and I taught the class out there and we decided in 2011 to do a joint collaborative performance with the Y and Ballet Next. There were high school kids that they invited to watch the performance, and I danced the White Swan pas de deux, where the guy comes out in white tights. They were all laughing! But the moment he lifted me over his head, they were like “Wow, this is amazing.” So I’ve been teaching there and doing the gala in Brooklyn. This will be the fifth year."