Jake Roxander began his dance training at the age of eight, studying with his parents at their school, Studio Roxander, in his hometown of Medford, Oregon. During his childhood, Roxander took gymnastics and voice lessons and performed in several musical theatre productions in southern Oregon. He was awarded full scholarships to Pennsylvania Ballet’s “Company Experience” workshop in 2017 and 2018, and to American Ballet Theatre’s New York Summer Intensive in 2019. He participated in the Youth America Grand Prix, receiving the Youth Grand Prix Award in 2016 and 2017 and the Grand Prix Award in 2018 and 2019. Roxander joined Pennsylvania Ballet’s second company in 2019 and was a featured dancer in PBII and main company productions.
Roxander joined ABT Studio Company in September 2020, became an apprentice with the main Company in May 2022, and joined the corps de ballet in September 2022. He was promoted to Soloist in March 2024. His repertoire includes Puck in The Dream, the peasant pas de deux in Giselle, Juan Alejandrez in Like Water for Chocolate, Harlequin and the Chinese Dance in Alexei Ratmansky’s The Nutcracker, Lensky in Onegin, Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet, Benno and the Neapolitan Dance in Swan Lake, Aminta in Sylvia, Florizel in The Winter’s Tale, Evans and “Becomings” in Woolf Works, leading roles in La Boutique, Études, and Piano Concerto No. 1, and featured roles in In the Upper Room and Mercurial Son.
ABT is grateful to Roxanne Glass and Wes Yonge for supporting the Dancer Fund in honor of Jake Roxander.
