Pennsylvania-born Ethan Stiefel began his dance training at the age of 8 in Madison, Wisconsin. He studied for two years at the Milwaukee Ballet School with both Ted Kivitt and Paul Sutherland. He also studied with Marcia Dale Weary at the Pennsylvania Youth Ballet before moving to New York to attend American Ballet Theatre's School of Classical Ballet and the School of American Ballet on scholarship. At 16 he joined the corps de ballet of the New York City Ballet. In 1992, Mr. Stiefel took a leave of absence to perform with the Zurich Ballet. He returned to the New York City Ballet one year later as a Soloist, and was promoted to Principal Dancer in 1995.