Dancer Jacques d’Amboise dies aged 86

Jacques d’Amboise (Mary Altaffer/AP)

Jacques d’Amboise, who became one of the world’s premier classical dancers at New York City Ballet, having grown up on the city’s streets, and spent the last four and a half decades providing free dance classes to the city’s young people at his National Dance Institute, has died aged  86.

His death was confirmed by Ellen Weinstein, director of the institute. She said the dancer and teacher had died on Sunday at his home from complications of a stroke. He was surrounded by his family.