Ben Stevenson, the longest serving artistic director at Texas Ballet Theater, died March 29 鈥� just days before his birthday. He was 89.
Stevenson was a legendary ballet dancer who led the North Texas company from 2003 to 2022 and established the group鈥檚 residencies at Bass Performance Hall and AT&T Performing Arts Center鈥檚 Winspear Opera House in Dallas.
He led some of the company鈥檚 most successful productions, including 鈥淪wan Lake,鈥� 鈥淩omeo and Juliet,鈥� 鈥淒racula鈥� and 鈥淭he Nutty Nutcracker.鈥�
Texas Ballet Theater 鈥� an honorary title 鈥� in June 2022. He remained involved with the company鈥檚 schools, choreographed new works and provided artistic coaching to students.
Current artistic director Tim O鈥橩eefe said Stevenson was not only a mentor but a family member whose artistry, generosity and vision shaped 鈥渢he very heart of Texas Ballet Theater.鈥�
鈥淚 will miss his wisdom, his humor, and his boundless passion for storytelling through dance,鈥� he said in a statement. 鈥淲hile my heart is heavy with grief, I am profoundly grateful for the decades of inspiration and love he shared with me and with this company. His spirit will live on in every performance, every dancer, and every audience moved by his work.鈥�
In a , Stevenson said his mission was to spread ballet across Fort Worth and 鈥渆ducate the public鈥� about the art form.
鈥淧eople go, 鈥極h I saw that ballet. I don鈥檛 like it,鈥欌�� he said. 鈥淏ut you don鈥檛 go to one movie and say, 鈥業鈥檓 never going back again.鈥� There鈥檚 all sorts of new works that are coming out. 鈥� Dance is so exciting. Movement is exciting.鈥�
Stevenson was born on April 4, 1936, in Portsmouth, England. He trained at London鈥檚 Arts Educational School and was awarded the Adeline Gen茅e Gold Medal, the highest honor from the Royal Academy of Dance.
At 18, he joined Sadler鈥檚 Wells Royal Ballet, now known as The Royal Ballet.
The dancer鈥檚 arrival to the U.S. came in 1968 when he led the Harkness Youth Dancers in New York. Two years later, he choreographed works for the inaugural season of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
In 1976, a 38-year old Stevenson made his way to Texas as artistic director of Houston Ballet. For nearly three decades, he transformed the small troupe into one of the world鈥檚 leading companies and founded the Houston Ballet Academy, according to a press release.
Around this time, he became an honorary faculty member with the Beijing Dance Academy. He was the only foreigner to receive the distinction at the academy and the ShenYang Conservatory of Music.
Stevenson鈥檚 international acclaim stretched back to his home country where he was named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in 1999.
The dancer鈥檚 tenure at Texas Ballet Theater started after he was approached by the company鈥檚 board to be a 鈥渢emporary advisor鈥� and help find a permanent artistic director after its former leader Paul Mejia stepped down, from D Magazine.
He was honored with the .
Stevenson is survived by his extended family in Portsmouth. Memorial service details will be announced at a later date.
David Moreno is the arts and culture reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at david.moreno@fortworthreport.org or .
The Fort Worth Report鈥檚 arts and culture coverage is supported in part by the Meta Alice Keith Bratten Foundation and the Virginia Hobbs Charitable Trust. At the Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy .
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