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By Elle Perry
It is not every day that you find a ballet conservatory-trained dancer who also holds an
economics degree.
Maxim Lin-Yee originally came to Memphis to perform as the Snow King in New Ballet
Ensemble's (NBE) Nut ReMix in 2014. More recently, the Oakland, California, native has served
as the ballet's head of business strategy and systems and artistic support.
Maxim Lin-Yee performs as the Snow King in the New Ballet Ensemble’s Nut ReMix
ANDREA ZUCKER
Lin-Yee said that he and his brother first became interested in ballet when his mother was taking
adult classes. His brother William became a principal dancer at Pacific Northwest Ballet.
"I think the part of ballet that I fell in love with was the execution of the movements," Lin-Yee
said. "It wasn't really the performing. Just the constant improvement. In ballet, you strive for
perfection, and perfection is unattainable."

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Beginning his training at Contra Costa Ballet Centre, Lin-Yee attended San Francisco Ballet
School on full scholarship and trained during the summer at The School of American Ballet in
New York City.
During college at the University of California, Davis, where he got a bachelor's degree in
economics, Lin-Yee continued taking ballet classes and performed with Stuart Carroll's Capitol
Ballet. After graduation, he joined Menlowe Ballet in California, performing leading roles.
"[There are] similarities in between the numbers and the patterns," Lin-Yee said of ballet and
economics. "I was taking numbers and telling a story with them and presenting them in a certain
way. So, ballet's kind of like storytelling with the body."
His background in the financial industry includes internships at the Bank of Shanghai in China
and at a hedge fund. Lin-Yee also worked in Bank of the West's Wealth Management Group and,
before joining NBE last fall, he was a financial analyst at a financial technology startup in San
Francisco.
"He brings a fresh perspective ... because he came to guest as a dancer," said chief executive
officer and artistic director Katie Smythe. "He basically brought his ideas of what could
strengthen our systems — and got a lot of those ideas implemented."
Lin-Yee said that his days differ but he is usually trying to make some aspect of the organization
run more efficiently.
"[I] just try to simplify processes and cut out either redundant ones and try to document what
needs to be done and have it all consistent so ... that everyone's on the same page," he said.
Smythe said that having someone, like Lin-Yee, with knowledge of ballet in his role was helpful.
"When he was investigating software, he could look at different ballet schools and what their
software was like and what their budgets looked like and do the comparison and not have to be
convinced that that was the right thing to do," she said.
Although Lin-Yee’s blending of dance and finance is unique, he is not the only “hybrid” at New
Ballet Ensemble.
Breana Moore, a graduate of the program, returned to NBE after earning a bachelor in science in
human and organizational development from Vanderbilt University. Moore acts as both a
marketing associate and teaching and performing artist for NBE.
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