Physical Therapist
New York, NY
Professional Services – Physical Therapy /
Full-Time /
On-site
American Ballet Theatre (ABT) is one of the greatest dance companies in the world. Since its founding season in 1940, ABT’s mission has been to create, present, preserve, and extend the incredible repertoire of classical dancing for the widest possible audience. Headquartered in New York City, ABT is the only cultural institution of its size and stature to extensively tour, enchanting audiences for eight decades in 50 U.S. states, 45 countries, and over 480 cities worldwide. ABT’s repertoire includes full-length classics from the nineteenth century, the finest works from the early twentieth century, and acclaimed contemporary masterpieces. In 2006, by an act of Congress, ABT was designated “America’s National Ballet Company®.”
The company Physical Therapist is a full-time position responsible for evaluating and treating primarily ABT dancers, and occasionally student dancers and staff. The position requires planning and administering physical therapy treatments designed to prevent injuries, restore function, manage, and alleviate pain and promote overall fitness and health of the dancers. The practitioner will determine if a worker’s comp claim needs to be filed and communicate with staff to do so. The PT will develop personalized treatment plans, recommend medical specialists, and provide exercise techniques to improve dancers’ health. The PT will be required to keep treatment notes, communicate with staff about dancers’ limitations due to injury and communicate with doctors about treatment plans and diagnoses.
The position will consist of a minimum of thirty-eight (38) weeks of work determined at the start of the contract period.
The position reports directly to Julie Daugherty, Company PT, and to Kyle Pickles, General Manager for employment
contract issues. The Physical Therapist will have a warm collaborative nature, positive energy, sense of humor, possess organization and prioritization skills and is self-motivated in the completion of his/her work. She/he will have exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, including interacting comfortably with various people. This person will have genuine empathy and an awareness of the needs and sensitivities of the dancers.
Specific Responsibilities
- Provide physical therapy diagnosis through appropriate patient evaluation. Must be able to recognize and respond appropriately to urgent/emergent situations and determine safe level of participation or referral to specialist.
- Develop individualized treatment plans for dancers including, but not limited to, exercises, stretching, modalities, and hands-on therapy to restore function.
- Maintain patient records and their confidentiality.
- Educating patients and staff regarding injuries and their impact on dance rehearsal and performance
- Coordinate the plan for a dancer returning to dance with ABT staff, and various outside medical professionals.
- Complies with the New York State Physical Therapy Act, codes, and regulations.
Hours and Workdays
- Minimum of thirty-eight (38) work weeks per dancer year (September 1 – August 31). Exact schedule to be determined by July 1.
- The hours and workdays are variable for these work weeks.
- Rehearsal weeks- generally Tuesdays through Saturdays
- Treatment times are generally 6 to 6.5 hours a day with a ½ hour lunch break. These hours will take place while the dancers are rehearsing, between the hours of 10:45-6:30, but may vary slightly, additional time may be needed for emergencies and to accomplish required duties.
- Performance weeks – 6 days a week depending on venue.
- Treatment times for performance days generally start at 11:00 –11:30 with a 1–2-hour break in the middle of the day and return to treatment time 3 hours before the show starts. A company physical therapist will be expected to remain in the theater for each performance, which will usually average three evenings per week. Matinees are similarly covered in a shared manner. Additional time may be needed for emergencies and to accomplish required duties.
- Touring weeks – will vary year to year.
- Accommodation, transportation and per diem provided for all tour weeks outside of New York.
- Vacation coverage weeks – will require fewer hours than a typical rehearsal week but will include at least 3 days a week.
Essential Skills/Qualifications
- Fully licensed practitioner in New York State.
- At least 3 years of PT experience.
- Experience working with dancers.
- Skilled manual therapist with sound knowledge of therapeutic exercises to restore function.
- Compassion and empathy for patients who are often in pain and anxious about their future dancing careers.
- Attention to detail regarding a patient’s problems to analyze what they need to alleviate their pain and to prevent further injury.
- Physical stamina for manual work on patients and long hours standing and demonstrating exercises.
- Interpersonal skills to build positive relationships with patients and staff.
- Communication skills to interact clearly with doctors and family members as well as patients.
- Experience working with ballet dancers.
- Excellent interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills.
- Low-ego, hands on, results-driven leadership style with down-to-earth, collaborative, “roll-up-your-sleeves” personality and work ethic, who can rally others to take the initiative in their areas of expertise.
- Ability to attend to multiple administrative matters.
- Ability to work collegially across departments and across the organization.
- Comfortable with administrative technology, scheduling software, virtual meetings, Microsoft Office Suite.
Benefits
- 10 days’ vacation, 2 personal days, 1 floating holiday; 20 sick days
- ABT also takes a “Hiatus Week” in August, and we close between Christmas and New Year; we also observe the standard annual Company Holidays including Juneteenth.
- 403(b) with no company match; eligible to participate after 6 months.
- Group health insurance where company pays 100% of the single premium rate for all plans; $1,500 annually if you chose not to participate in the plan (Medical, Dental, Vision)
- Short-Term Disability Insurance, Life Insurance, etc. provided by the company.
$90,000 - $105,000 a year
American Ballet Theatre is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to providing a workplace free from harassment and discrimination. We are committed to recruiting, hiring, training, and promoting qualified people of all backgrounds, and make all employment decisions without regard to any protected status.
