The first time Christopher Stuart saw Grease, he wasn’t thinking about ballet. He was watching John Travolta, entranced by the way he moved—the rhythm, the ease, the sheer joy of it. He wanted to dance like that.
That fascination with musicals led him to dance classes; not ballet at first, but jazz and contemporary. Then, one day, he stepped into a ballet studio, and something clicked.
"I took my first ballet class, and I thought, ‘Oh wow. This is fun. This is interesting,’” Stuart recalls. By age 14, he knew: "I decided that I wanted to be a professional dancer."
That decision took him from his home in Connecticut to North Carolina, then to the Boston Ballet, and eventually to stages around the world. Today, as Artistic Director of Alabama Ballet, he’s bringing that same sense of discovery to audiences in Birmingham.
"I wanted to bring something fresh to the city," he says. "Keeping the classics, of course, but also creating new works that have ties to Birmingham and Alabama—whether that's through local musicians, composers, or collaborations with places like the Birmingham Museum of Art.”
Since his arrival in July 2023, Alabama Ballet has staged groundbreaking productions, from Peter Pan to Under the Lights, a ballet set to Johnny Cash’s music.
"When I met with Johnny Cash’s son in Nashville, he said, ‘My parents never would have thought their music would be made into a ballet, but they would have thought it was a real hoot and would have loved to see it,’” Stuart recalls.
Stuart’s spirit of reinvention aligns with the vision of choreographer James Whiteside, a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre in New York. Whiteside is collaborating with Stuart to choreograph a major piece for the upcoming world premiere of Unbound.
A Tale of Two Innovators
Stuart and Whiteside go way back. They started dancing at the same studio in Connecticut, training in what Whiteside calls "the American trifecta of jazz, tap, and ballet." Both went on to classical ballet careers, but their foundations in diverse movement styles shaped the artists they would become.
"I think that history is still in both of us," Whiteside says. "Chris is doing a Johnny Cash ballet for Unbound, and my piece is set to music by FKA Twigs. It’s such a contrast—Johnny Cash and electronic pop—but it also makes sense because it reflects the way we were trained in more than just ballet."
That eclecticness embodies the spirit of Unbound, a production designed to push creative boundaries.
"The reason I named it Unbound is that every year that you see it, it’s going to be completely different," Stuart explains. "It’s an ever-evolving series, featuring either new works created here at Alabama Ballet or pieces that have never been performed in Birmingham before."
Unbound will be an immersive experience.
"I’ve choreographed each song to work with a specific lighting design, so the visuals and movement are completely intertwined,” Whiteside says.
His choreography fuses classical ballet with a bold, contemporary edge.
"It’s still ballet—the women are in pointe shoes, and you’ll recognize classical technique—but it’s assembled in a fresh way, to modern music," Whiteside says. "It’s going to be sexy. The costumes, the lighting, the movement—it all ties together into this very impressive, high-energy experience."
A Ballet for Everyone
Both Stuart and Whiteside share a commitment to making ballet accessible.
"Ballet should be something people can walk into and connect with, whether they have a dance background or not," Stuart says. "I don’t want anyone to sit in the audience feeling like they need to ‘understand’ it—I just want them to experience something beautiful and moving."
Whiteside agrees.
"I hope that audiences get riled up and jazzed by experiencing live theater," he says. "Something truly unique and ephemeral—an experience you can’t get from sitting home watching Netflix."
Both Stuart and Whiteside are taking leaps—literal and figurative—toward the future of ballet.
"I want it to get to the point where people just see that Alabama Ballet is performing and don’t even think twice about getting tickets," Stuart says. "Our performances are for everybody."
For now, that future starts in Birmingham. When Unbound premieres at the Alys Stephens Center, it won’t just be a performance. It will be a statement—about what ballet can be, who it can reach, and how it can continue to evolve.
And if you ask Stuart and Whiteside, this is still just the beginning.