Ken Tabachnick has been lighting Stephen’s work for over thirty years. He currently works is a consultant as a Senior Associate at AEA Consulting independently. In addition to serving as a Dance/USA Trustee, he is a member of the Citizens’ Advisory Committee to the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, advising on the development of that city’s cultural plan. He also serves as Trustee of the Westbeth Housing Development Corporation, which oversees an artists housing complex in New York, and is a Trustee and Treasurer of the Gilbert Hemsley Lighting Programs, as well of the Stephen Petronio Company. Tabachnick recently completed a stint in higher education as deputy dean at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and prior to that as dean of the School of the Arts, Purchase College, SUNY. Tabachnick served as the general manager for the New York City Ballet (NYCB), had his own practice as a lawyer focusing on intellectual property, licensing, and corporate matters. He was the managing member of indieWIRE LLC, a news publisher focused on the independent film sector and served as general counsel for Rising Tide Studios. Tabachnick 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, and Karol Armitage, among 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 included: Pittsburgh Opera, Greater Miami Opera, Michigan Opera, Wolf Trap Opera Company, Hartford Stage, and Berkeley Rep. Tabachnick lives in New York City with his wife and teaches Tae Kwon Do, in which he holds a 3rd Degree Black Belt.
