Curtain Up! The Houston Ballet, the fourth-largest ballet company in the U.S., recently welcomed its new Executive Director, Sonja Kostich.
With a near-term goal to learn the company inside and out, Kostich begins her tenure with the Houston Ballet after the retirement of longtime leader Jim Nelson. Kostich plans to continue Nelson’s work and build on the company’s current strategies, while expanding the Ballet’s reach locally, nationally, and internationally.
“Houston Ballet and this city are often called a ‘best kept secret,’ but the world deserves to know the brilliance and innovation that is generated and proliferating here,” Kostich said.
An Evolving Talent
Kostich grew up in Minneapolis and as a child was exposed to the arts thanks to her parents. With music always in her house, and trips to ballets, theaters, symphonies, and museums, she fell in love with the creative environment. Kostich gave violin, piano, ballet and acting a try but it was ballet that spoke to her most.
“As a child adopted from an orphanage, the arts was a magical place. Ballet won my heart because it encompassed everything: movement, athleticism, music, acting, fashion, visual arts, and community. I’ll never forget sitting in the theater as a child, filled with anticipation as the lights slowly went down — anything dreamed was possible,” Kostich said.
At age 15 Kostich moved to New York City to study at New York City Ballet’s School American Ballet followed by American Ballet Theatre (ABT). After a year, the famed Mikhail Baryshnikov asked her to join ABT, leading her to tour nation wide as a teenager.
After two decades, Kostich hung up her professional ballet slippers, and thought about the next steps. She co-founded dance company OtherShore and ran that for six years before obtaining a business degree and later a masters in arts administration.
Kostich’s professional experience includes arts administration roles at Mark Morris Dance Group and New York City Center. Later she took on the role of Chief Executive and Artistic Officer of Kaatsbaan Cultural Park and then President and Executive Director of the Baryshnikov Arts center in NYC, before joining Houston Ballet.
In Conversation:
We chatted with Kostich about the new role, the Houston Ballet and what the Houston community can look forward to.
HFC: What drew you to the role of Executive Director of the Houston Ballet?
SK: With over a decade as an arts executive director, the opportunity to lead a company as renowned as Houston Ballet was a once-in-a-lifetime honor. The Company’s considerable reputation caught my attention, and I saw it as perfectly positioned to soar to new heights. Its mission – to inspire a lasting love and appreciation for dance through artistic excellence, exhilarating performances, innovative choreography and superb educational programs – aligns with my belief that the power of dance is undeniable in its ability to bring wonder and joy to our lives.
Now that I’ve settled in Houston, I am also finding that the city itself is extraordinary and am delighted in my daily discoveries. It is one of the most diverse cities I have come across and is reflected in its arts and culture, in its culinary scene, and in its various unique neighborhoods that are rich in character and history. I also see this mirrored in the makeup of Houston Ballet.
HFC: What does assuming this role mean to you personally and professionally?
SK: Reinventing myself after a lifetime as a dancer was not without challenges—so becoming Executive Director of Houston Ballet is a dream come true. I share with younger generations the words of the poet Rainer Maria Rilke: “Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far into the future, you will gradually live your way into the answer.”
Transitioning from being a ballet dancer to working in the corporate financial world gave me the experience needed to understand and manage risk, measure profitability, and create solutions through quantitative analysis, projecting, and forecasting on a large commercial scale and communicating that to an audience of the widest scope.
I am excited to take on this new role and bring to Houston Ballet an understanding of company complexities, the challenges and joys of groundbreaking programming, managing risk, allocating resources, and growing financial and operational health. Collaboration, multiple perspectives, and community connection are essential.
HFC: Not only does Houston Ballet focus on its seasonal program, it also has community initiatives and programs. Can you talk about the impact there?
SK: Our Education and Community Engagement programs, many of which are supported by the legendary Houston Ballet ballerina and current Associate Director Lauren Anderson, are committed to providing high-quality, community-sponsored educational programming to the diverse populations of Houston and its surrounding areas. In 2024-2025, we had a total of 17 programs throughout Houston with 88% of all our programs being free. We served 287 schools within 39 districts, totaling 56,100 students, and our programs visited 24 libraries and community centers, partnering with Arts Connect Houston, Down Syndrome Association of Houston, and Houston Area Parkinson Society. We also awarded $222,188 in scholarships for our Chance to Dance program, which is a program that provides free, eight-week-long professional ballet classes to 6- and 7-year-old students from economically disadvantaged Houston-area schools.
We’re also excited to host a sensory-friendly Nutcracker performance on November 28 in the Wortham Theater Center, modified for individuals with sensory sensitivities. It will provide an opportunity for families to come together and share a special performance experience in a more relaxed environment.
HFC: Can you talk about the Wortham Theater Center as the Ballet’s residence and what it offers the company?
SK: The Wortham Theater Center’s history speaks to Houston’s extraordinary community. Built in the 1980s during a challenging economic period, it was funded entirely by over 3,500 private donors, including major support from the Wortham Foundation, the Cullen Foundation, and the Brown Foundation.
Houston First as the operator of the Wortham, provides Houston Ballet and its audience its beloved home in the 2,400-seat Brown Theater. I am eager to continue our wonderful partnership with [the Houston First] team to strengthen the arts and culture sector for Houston with excellence and accessibility for our community. We bring thousands of dancers, students, collaborators, and administrators to Houston, generating economic activity across hotels, restaurants, shopping, real estate, and more. These incoming individuals are all consumers, who additionally support our multiple and various arts institutions and cultural activities that take place throughout Houston.
With 120,000 patrons visiting the Wortham annually, our performances create ripple effects across the city’s economy. Houston Ballet generates upward of $100 million annually, directly providing 1,600 jobs. In partnership with Houston First, including our significant presence and achievements at the Wortham, we aim to be an exceptional and visionary leader for both the cultural industry at large as well as the spectacular city of Houston.
HFC: What can the Houston community look forward to from the Houston Ballet this year?
SK: Houston Ballet has come to embody a community of exciting, fun, joyful shared experiences – and we have many of those special moments to look forward to in the coming year.
We just completed wonderful successful runs of our Series I programs, which took place throughout September and included the breathtaking and heart-wrenching story ballet Onegin and our Rock, Roll & Tutus program which included four incredibly diverse repertory ballets that brilliantly showcased the jaw-dropping athleticism and artistry of our dancers. Our 2025-2026 season continues with the ultimate holiday tradition The Nutcracker (Nov 28-Dec 28) and the famous Nutcracker Market® (Nov 13–16) at NRG Center featuring 280 merchants and their unique selections of seasonal decor, gifts, gourmet treats, jewelry, fashion and more. Ancillary events include the Wells Fargo Preview Party (Nov 12), Snow Queen’s Luncheon (Nov 13), and Sugar Plum’s Luncheon (Nov 14).
In the spring, we’ll bring Sylvia, an epic love story; Broken Wings, a ballet inspired by Mexican painter Frida Kahlo’s life and art; An Evening with the Stars, a dynamic mixed repertoire program; and Giselle, one of the most treasured Romantic ballets. Special events include Ballet Ball (Feb 21, 2026) and Raising the Barre (Apr 26, 2026), pairing dancers with Houston’s top chefs.
Because of our community’s support, Houston Ballet continues to bring bold works to the stage, allowing creativity and excellence to thrive. I’m grateful to be part of a community that welcomes new voices and champions innovation and traditions. I look forward to celebrating together at performances and events, and to sharing the joy ballet brings to our lives and communities—here in Houston, and beyond.
Learn more about the Houston Ballet and all that it offers.
Written by Norma Salcedo
Photo by Julie Soefer (2025). Courtesy of Houston Ballet.
