Stephen Perkyns, a native of Houston, Texas, joined the New York City Ballet as Principal Cellist in the Fall of 2022.

Stephen has given several solo recitals and performed as a soloist with orchestras such as the Yale Philharmonia. Mr. Perkyns has been a finalist and prize winner in many regional, state, and national competitions, including the 2019 Pasadena Showcase Competition, the 2017 HTMC Ruth Burr Competition, and the 2017 Mika Hasler National Competition. As a chamber musician, he has participated in concert series such as the Colburn Chamber Music Society and Core Memory Music, won chamber music competitions such as Colburn’s Recovered Voices Competition, and collaborated with artists such as Noah Bendix-Balgley, Desmond Hoebig, Kathleen Winkler, Scott St. John, Paul Coletti, and the Viano String Quartet. Mr. Perkyns has worked as principal cellist in the Yale Philharmonia, the Colburn Orchestra, and the Shepherd School of Music Chamber Orchestra.

Stephen Perkyns recently graduated with his Master of Musical Arts degree at the Yale School of Music, where he studied with Paul Watkins and was a recipient of the 2022 Aldo Parisot Prize. Previously, Mr. Perkyns studied with Clive Greensmith at the Colburn Conservatory where he received his Masters of Music degree in 2020, and Desmond Hoebig at Rice University, Shepherd School of Music, graduating in 2018 with a Bachelor of Music degree in cello performance