Ballerina Chloe Misseldine had just hit the peak of her young, professional career in early July. In front of a packed house at the Metropolitan Opera, the American Ballet Theatre soloist made her New York debut in the lead role of “Swan Lake,” dancing the most famous ballet of all.
Taking her curtain call bows in front of the audience, Misseldine had no idea what would happen next.
Six months later, as ABT arrives at Segerstrom Center for the Arts for its annual performances of “The Nutcracker,” and as the 22-year-old prepares for her debut in the lead of the second most famous ballet of all, Misseldine remains a bit dazed recalling the stunning moment.
“(With the bows) I was acknowledging the audience and our company. It was my partner who sort of motioned to me to look into the wings.
“That’s when I saw her.”
“Her,” was Susan Jaffe. The former ABT star dancer who now runs the company as artistic director, Jaffe was walking onto the stage, a microphone in hand. Jaffe turned slightly to her right, including both Misseldine and the audience in her sightline.
Jaffe announced “So, Chloe Misseldine doesn’t know this yet, but as of this moment, she’s just been promoted to principal dancer.”
A New York Times reporter in attendance noted “the crowd went nuts.”
A public pronouncement of a promotion to the company’s highest rank of dancer was itself unprecedented, but, more significantly, Misseldine had become the second youngest ballerina to be named principal in ABT’s 85-year history
“I’m so young,” she acknowledged. “And I was just grateful to have this opportunity to dance and show the audience my love for ballet and performing.
“And we — I mean, the company — we don’t promote people on a stage,” Misseldine said. “When I was promoted (in 2022) from the corps to soloist it was in a basement rehearsal room.”
WHY NOW?
In a separate interview Jaffe explained what led to the star-making moment, a decision made immediately following the July matinee.
It hit Jaffee while watching Misseldine that afternoon, after observing over time the fledgling dancer’s talent blossom and her work habits flourish.
“Her (‘Swan Lake’) second act was just really beautiful. And you never feel worried when you watch her, the steely technique is so strong and secure,” said Jaffe.
“(Backstage) I went up to our stage manager and said, ‘If Chloe really brings it home in the third act, the Black Swan, get a mic ready, I’m going to promote her.’ ”
Asked about her own circumstances back in the day when Jaffe herself was promoted from soloist to principal, it was her turn to be a little bewildered.
Informed that her biography says it occurred in 1983, she had to think about that.
“Yes, OK. 1983. And out of town, on the road. In an office somewhere. ‘Misha’ (Mikhail Baryshnikov, then running ABT) told me and (longtime company principal) Bob LaFosse he believed in us, and he wanted us to represent the company.”
This time, the ballet director’s belief in Misseldine — “with full conviction… this promotion was a thousand percent earned” — and her ability to represent the company is something Jaffe decided to share publicly.
“I thought it would be really wonderful for that audience to witness and be a part of. Chloe will be a mainstay for us and It’s something they will never forget.“
BALLET BLOODLINES
Misseldine grew up in Orlando in a family of five. She doesn’t exactly see her early dance classes from the age of 3 or 4 as a priority, but it was something very familiar to her because of her mother Yan Chen.
Born in China, Chen became a dancer at the Shanghai Dance School and eventually joined ABT, rising in the 1990s to the rank of soloist (she danced the part of Clara in 1993 in Costa Mesa during her ABT era’s production of “The Nutcracker.”)
Chen subsequently retired from dancing to raise a family and to teach. She is currently an instructor and rehearsal coordinator with ABT.
“Ballet was definitely always a factor,” said Misseldine. “I went to classes a lot (often where Chen was teaching), so it felt natural to be around dance, learning to do it with others.”
After training at the Orlando Ballet School, her path led Misseldine to Orange County when she was 12 or 13, as she recalls.
“The ABT summer program was at UC Irvine. My mom was with me and most of the older kids stayed in dorms, but we were in an apartment while she was teaching.
“I got to tag along and I made so many amazing friends in those two years and got to dance great repertoire at a young age.”
Radiating fondness, she said, “I loved California, I loved Irvine. I made so many amazing friends in those two years, I just remember it being so much fun!”
Her progress was steady. After attending subsequent ABT summer programs in New York, she became an apprentice with the company at 17 and joined the corps in 2019.
This led her back to post-pandemic Orange County where she has appeared in “The Nutcracker” in the second act snowflake sequences, as well as dancing in the ballet’s higher profile Spanish Dance and the “Sisters” quintet, the work that’s performed by the taller dancers.
AMPLITUDE
A notable key in Misseldine’s dance arsenal is that she is literally heads and shoulders above most of her peers.
At 5-foot-9 she is at the top end of the measuring stick of what many companies would consider an ideal ballerina.
En pointe, she extends above an eye-raising 6 feet.
Jaffe: “She has tremendous length, yes. And breadth, too… there is ‘amplitude’ in her movements. Combined with her sterling technique … there are magical intangibles on display.”
This, for Jaffe, is key to what is required to be a principal at ABT.
“If you’re an empty shell doing some pretty steps, well, to be honest, nobody will care,” she said, some steeliness of her own showing through.
Asked what the drawbacks can be for Misseldine at her height, Jaffe said that “honestly, the only challenge is just finding a partner.”
Misseldine’s partner at “Swan Lake,” the one who gave her the nudge to look to the wings, is principal dancer Aran Bell. He will be the Nutcracker Prince accompanying Misseldine for her performance as Clara in Costa Mesa.
“Aaron is a beautiful fit for her; he’s very tall and very strong,” Jaffe said.
‘THE NUTCRACKER’
A dance highlight in this “Nutcracker” choreography is the couple’s second act pas de deux.
“It is the most difficult pas I have ever seen in the world, because it requires tremendous stamina,” said Jaffe. “It takes tremendous strength on both male and female to create the beauty here.”
Misseldine welcomes challenges like these, wanting to grow into the roles that test her as well as delight her.
“All the opportunities, all the balance I’m given, all the coaching, and all the like, pathway that I’m offered is just … I’m so lucky!”
There is another thing she is very clear about.
As she prepares to debut her Clara in “The Nutcracker” on Saturday night on the Segerstrom stage, on a scale of 1 to10 how happy is she in her professional life right now?
Misseldine believes “11” covers it.
American Ballet Theatre’s ‘The Nutcracker’
When: Through Dec. 22. 7 p.m. Wednesday-Friday; 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday; 12:30 and 5:30 p.m, Sunday, Dec. 15; 11:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 22.
Where: Segerstrom Center for the Arts, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa
Tickets: $32.77-$349.17.
Information: 949-556-2787; scfta.org
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