A New York City Ballet soloist describes her successful fight to keep diabetes from destroying her artistry and her career. I became an apprentice at New York City Ballet in the fall of 1983, shortly after the death of George Balanchine. By the following year I was a member of the corps de ballet. To […]

Many little girls dream of someday becoming professional ballerinas, dancing with the grace of a swan, in the spotlight before thousands. Ballerina Zippora Karz, 35, is proof that diabetes doesn’t stop dreams and goals from being reached. “If you have a love for something, diabetes will not stop you,” she said. “You need to put […]

Dancing was in my family. My grandmother danced a solo act in Vaudeville and my mother folk-danced. So, when my mother heard about an amazing ballet teacher in the San Fernando Valley near our home, she suggested we try it and I agreed to try ballet lessons. My teacher Sheila understood the technical as well […]

I will always remember my first encounter with Zippora Karz. It was a breathtaking photograph of the beautiful ballerina. She was poised in mid-air in a classic dance expression realized from years of formal training with the New York City Ballet. Ever since, I had imagined Zippora as larger than life. And that she is, […]