Kansas City Ballet York City Ballet dancer Patricia McBride performed her first full-length production of "Giselle" with the KCB. In January 1981, Todd Bolender, a renowned and long-time New York City Ballet (NYCB) dancer, teacher, and choreographer, accepted the artistic directorship of the Kansas City Ballet. His first year proved to be pivotal for the company with the introduction of major new works and the implementation of several major initiatives. In May 1982, Bolender saluted his mentor, George Balanchine, by presenting a four-day Balanchine Festival at the Lyric Theatre. Kevin Amey joined KCB as company manager in February 1983. During the 1983-1984 season,
Kansas City Ballet Kansas City Ballet The Kansas City Ballet (KCB) is an American professional ballet company based in Kansas City, Missouri. The company was founded in 1957 by Tatiana Dokoudovska. The Kansas City Ballet steadily developed and grew under Dokoudovska (1957-1981) and her artistic director successors Todd Bolender (1981-1995) and William Whitener (1996-2013). The KCB presents five major performances each season to include an annual production of The Nutcracker. In the 2016-2017 season, KCB grew to an all-time high with 30 company dancers, 15 second company dancers, 64 full-time and part-time staff, and a network of over 400 local volunteers. The KCB