Arts professional Ken Tabachnick receives Honorary Fellowship

Arts professional Ken Tabachnick received his Honorary Fellowship this January, abroad in New York.

Ken Tabachnick is the Executive Director of the Merce Cunningham Trust, where he oversees all operations and long-term planning. Prior to this position, Ken worked as a consultant on strategic planning and other organisational matters, independently and as a Senior Associate at AEA Consulting. From 2013-2016, he was Deputy Dean at the Tisch School of the Arts, NYU and was previously the first Dean of the School of the Arts at Purchase College, where he oversaw the arts conservatories and served on the Performing Arts Center Renovation Committee. Before joining academia, Ken was the General Manager for New York City Ballet (NYCB), where, in addition to overseeing administrative aspects of operations, he supervised the renovation of the David H. Koch Theater. He was also the managing member of indieWIRE LLC, a news publisher focused on the independent film sector and served as general counsel for Rising Tide Studios.

Ken Tabachnik was awarded his Honorary Fellowship by Dr Naomi Lefebvre Sell, Trinity Laban’s Associate Director, Dance, at a short ceremony in New York in February.

Ken began his career as a lighting designer working with clients such as the Bolshoi Ballet, Kirov Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, Martha Graham Dance Company, Trisha Brown Company, Live from Lincoln Center, Robert Wilson, Susan Marshall, and Karole Armitage, amongst others. He was also the resident lighting director at New York City Opera from 1986 to 1990, where he designed approximately a dozen operas. Some of his other design clients include Pittsburgh Opera, Greater Miami Opera, Michigan Opera, Wolf Trap Opera Company, Hartford Stage, and Berkeley Rep. Ken was awarded a Bessie Award for excellence in lighting design for his work with Stephen Petronio, with whom he has collaborated for more than 30 years. In addition to being a Trustee of the Stephen Petronio Company, he is a Trustee of the Hemsley Lighting Programs and of the Studio School of Design, as well as a former Trustee of Dance/USA, the Westbeth Housing Development Corporation, and a member of the Citizens’ Advisory Committee to the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Upon the appointment of his Honorary Fellowship, Ken Tabachnik comments: “It is a great honour to be named an Honorary Fellow at Trinity Laban. I have marvelled at the conservatoire’s breadth of training that includes a commitment to the legacy of Merce Cunningham, which I have been charged, until recently, with sharing with aspiring artists and the public. By accepting this honour, I am joining a distinguished list of other Fellows. I am very happy to add my voice to those that support this extraordinary institution and its goals.”