(484) Deborah Wingert on Marcia Dale Weary, Balanchine, and Preserving Ballet Lineage

(484) Deborah Wingert on Marcia Dale Weary, Balanchine, and Preserving Ballet Lineage

Author: Michael Sean Breeden & Rebecca King Ferraro March 11, 2026 Duration: 1:05:40

Listen to Conversations on Dance ad-free on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/conversationsondance


Today on the Conversations on Dance podcast, we talk with former New York City Ballet dancer and Balanchine répétiteur Deborah Wingert about her early training at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, where rigorous daily classes, musical and artistic context, and early teaching responsibilities shaped her discipline and curiosity. Wingert recounts being accepted to the School of American Ballet, performing key workshop roles, and joining NYCB at 16, including formative experiences and personal coaching from George Balanchine before his death in 1983. She describes thriving as a detail-oriented “sponge,” navigating later casting and body-image pressures, and building a wide repertory across Balanchine and Robbins works. After leaving NYCB, she began teaching privately and at multiple New York schools, then expanded into staging Balanchine works around the world.



00:00 Meet The Hosts

00:11 Debra Wingert Overview

01:35 First Ballet Spark

04:16 CPYB Magic And Context

06:31 Rigor And Early Teaching

14:24 SAB Audition And Move

16:50 Workshop Breakthrough Roles

18:57 Joining NYCB At Sixteen

25:10 Balanchine Coaching Moments

27:21 Life After Balanchine

28:19 Other SAB Teachers

33:22 Body Image And Confidence

35:09 Backstage Ballet Devotion

35:34 Staying in the Company

36:39 Outside Projects and Robbins

38:07 Leaving NYCB and Starting to Teach

40:55 Outreach and Repertory Staging

43:10 Learning to Stage New Works

45:33 Musicality and Version Options

51:18 Keeping Patterns and Details Alive

55:56 Dream Ballets and Future Stagings

01:04:06 Closing Thanks and Signoff


Conversations on Dance was the recipient of the 2024 Clive Barnes Award for Journalism and Media Achievement.


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Website: conversationsondancepod.com

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For anyone who has ever watched a performance and wondered about the life that happens in the wings, Conversations on Dance offers a rare and thoughtful backstage pass. Hosted by former Miami City Ballet dancers Rebecca King Ferraro and Michael Sean Breeden, this award-winning podcast builds on a simple, powerful premise: the most compelling stories in dance aren't always told under the lights. Since 2016, their interviews have provided an essential, grounded look at the art form, moving far beyond reviews or technique to explore the real human endeavors behind the curtain. Each episode is a deep, considered dialogue with the field's most influential voices-not only dancers and choreographers, but also the musicians, directors, and educators whose work shapes the entire ecosystem. Listening feels like pulling up a chair in a studio lounge, where the conversation might cover the gritty reality of a choreographer's creative process, the collaborative tension with a composer, or an educator's philosophy on cultivating the next generation. The hosts' own professional backgrounds inform a dialogue that is both knowledgeable and genuinely curious, fostering connections between the art and its audience. This podcast consistently uncovers the discipline, vulnerability, and sheer hard work that define a life in dance, making the vast world of performance feel intimately accessible. It’s for the dedicated student, the lifelong enthusiast, and the simply curious-anyone who believes understanding the struggle and joy behind the steps only deepens the appreciation of the final, fleeting bow.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

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