Chun Wai
Chan
& Friends

In the summer of 2026, Chun Wai Chan, Principal Dancer of New York City Ballet, will return to China for the first time in a touring production, joined by leading ballet artists from New York and the international stage. Titled New York Stars: A Night of Ballet, the production will be presented across four cities—Hangzhou, Shanghai, Huizhou, and Shenzhen—in July 2026, with a total of six performances.

The first act centers on the timeless masterpieces of George Balanchine, showcasing the purity and elegance of American ballet. From Apollo to Jewels: Diamonds, from Tarantella to Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux, Balanchine's distinctive choreographic language will be brought vividly to life on the Chinese stage, inviting audiences into the artistic world of New York City Ballet.

The second act expands into a broader contemporary vision. Works by acclaimed choreographers such as Justin Peck, Christopher Wheeldon, and William Forsythe will be presented alongside Chen Zhenwei's own original creation, Butterfly Lovers, forming the most moving chapter of the evening. Inspired by China's thousand-year-old romantic legend and expressed through the vocabulary of Western ballet, Butterfly Lovers is Chun Wai Chan's most heartfelt interpretation of cultural dialogue between East and West.

As the first Chinese Principal Dancer in the more than seventy-year history of New York City Ballet, Chun Wai Chan's return to China with fellow artists is more than a performance tour—it is a dialogue that transcends cultural boundaries: about ballet, about identity, and about the power of art to connect people across the world.