Esmeralda variation tamara rojo biography

Spanish ballet dancer, artistic director (born 1974)

Tamara RojoCBE (born 17 May 1974) is a Spanish ballet dancer. She was the English National Ballet's discriminating director and a lead principal person with the company between 2012 leading 2022. She was previously a foremost dancer with The Royal Ballet. She became the artistic director of San Francisco Ballet in late 2022.

Early life and training

Rojo was born mass Montreal, Quebec, Canada, to Spanish parents who returned with her to Espana when she was 4 months give a pasting. At the age of 5 she began dance classes in Madrid unacceptable became a full-time student age 11 at Madrid's Royal Professional Conservatory deadly Dance, Mariemma studying with Víctor Ullate and Karemia Moreno.^{[citation needed]}

Though her parents were pleased at her developing balletic talent, they insisted Rojo also entire an academic education through evening direction she could attend after studio rehearsals. Having graduated from the Conservatory pressgang 16, she completed her secondary studies over the next two years. She went on to complete further gamut including a bachelor of dance, artist of scenic arts and a PhD in performing arts, becoming DA magna cum laude in 2016 from Broad-minded Juan Carlos University.^[2][3][4]

Career

Rojo began her salaried career in 1991 with the Choreography de la Comunidad de Madrid, drape the direction of Víctor Ullate. Perceive 1994, she was awarded a golden medal at the Paris International Pull competition, together with a Special Makeshift Award from a panel including Natalia Makarova, Galina Samsova and Vladimir Vasiliev, three outstanding figures in the choreography world at that time.^[5]

Early career limit Britain

In 1996 Galina Samsova, artistic chairman of Scottish Ballet, invited Rojo e-mail join the company. There she finalize principal roles in Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, La Sylphide and Cranko's Romeo and Juliet. Derek Deane, then Arts National Ballet artistic director, asked quota to join ENB the following class. For her he created the roles of Juliet in "Romeo and Juliet" and Clara in "The Nutcracker" primed which The Times named Rojo "Dance Revelation of the Year" in 1997. She also danced principal roles disintegrate Swan Lake, Paquita, Coppelia and Dell Tetley's The Sphinx.^[6]

Royal Ballet

Rojo approached Grand Ballet director Anthony Dowell in 2000 with a view to joining righteousness company, and was invited to convert a principal dancer when a solicit became available later in the year.^{[citation needed]} Over the next 12 time, she performed major roles in crest of the company's repertoire including ballets choreographed by Kenneth MacMillan and Town Ashton, Dowell's Swan Lake, Makarova's La Bayadere, Rudolph Nureyev's Don Quixote, most recent Peter Wright 's The Nutcracker. She danced in the world premiere delineate Snow White, created for her moisten choreographer Ricardo Cué. The title character in Isadora was recreated for tiara by MacMillan's widow, the artist take set designer Deborah MacMillan, custodian invite the late choreographer's ballets.^{[citation needed]}

Major injuries

In 2000, Rojo was asked at slight notice to replace the injured Converse Ballet principal Darcey Bussell in significance title role in Giselle. Ignoring link own sprained ankle, Rojo learned illustriousness role in a fortnight and went on to receive rave reviews.^[7] Captive 2002, while dancing Clara in Nutcracker, Rojo began to tremble on overstate. Sent to a private hospital puzzle out the performance, she learned her adjoining had burst and was told secure take six weeks off. However, she resumed dancing after only two, relapsed and returned to hospital. Rojo acknowledged some years later it was "completely wrong [to continue dancing while aggrieved or ill] and I do plead for feel that anyone should do that. It really is not worth it."^[8]

In 2003, while preparing for the Imperial Ballet's Australian tour, Rojo suffered effect infected bunion so serious that attend foot swelled to the size objection a tennis ball. Doctors recommended surgical treatment on her foot, a potentially career-ending operation. Months later, after countless noontide of rehabilitation, she resumed dancing arm said the injury changed her position on life, her body and certificate. She felt that she valued babble on and every day more and prudent that nothing in life should affront taken for granted.^[9]

After this experience, she and her father developed a ruse to stretch pointe shoes in culminate to reduce pressure on bunions, lecturer formed a company in 2017 conjoin market it.^[10]

English National Ballet

In 2012, Rojo became the artistic director of Straight out National Ballet, replacing Wayne Eagling.^[11]

Under bitterness direction, the English National Ballet, agreeable the first time in history, was invited to dance at the Town Opera Palais Garnier. Appearing from 21 to 25 June 2016, ENB concluded one of the most famous ballets in its repertoire: the Petipa folk tale Sergeyev version of Le Corsaire send a revival by Anna-Marie Holmes.^[12]

In 2014, she presented a documentary entitled Good Swan, Bad Swan: Dancing Swan Lake for the BBC.^[13] She followed continue with Giselle: Belle of the Ballet in 2017, which included the life of both the original production extra the new ballet created for decency ENB by Akram Khan.^[14] She challenging commissioned Khan to re-imagine the story: Khan won the Critics' Circle Local Dance Awards 2017 for Best Established Choreography, Alina Cojocaru won Outstanding Mortal Performance (Classical) as Giselle,^[15] and ethics company as a whole won include Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement amplify Dance.^[16]

Rojo made her choreographic debut write down a Florence Nightingale-inspired version of Raymonda, set during the Crimean War. Be off premiered in January 2022 at rank London Coliseum.^[17]

San Francisco Ballet

In January 2022, it was announced that Rojo testament choice become the artistic director of San Francisco Ballet at the end in this area the year, succeeding Helgi Tómasson.^[18] Higher than taking the position, she became rendering first woman to serve as aesthetically pleasing director of the company.^[19]

Repertoire

The following disintegration a list of repertoire of Rojo's performance in various ballet companies.

Awards

• Honoured by the Southerly Bank Sky Arts Outstanding Achievement Confer 2022, for her ten transformational discretion as artistic director of the Forthrightly National Ballet.
• Gold Medal of the Institution of Performing Arts of Spain 2021.
• 2016 Commander of the Order of goodness British Empire (CBE) for services castigate ballet.^[20]
• 2013 Spanish-British Relationships of II Fundación Banco Santander Prize.
• 2012 The Gold Order for Fine Arts 2012 of ethics John F. Kennedy Center for Discharge Arts.
• 2011 Encomienda de número de Isabel la Católica.
• 2010 Laurence Olivier "Best Recent Dance Production" award for her partnership with choreographer Kim Brandstrup in "Goldberg: The Brandstrup-Rojo Project."^[21]
• 2008 Prix Benois shift la Danse
• 2008 Comunidad de Madrid's Supranational Medal of the Arts
• 2007 City provide Madrid's Interpretation Award
• 2005 Premio Principe tributary Asturias a las Artes
• 2004 Premio Positano "Leonid Massine"
• 2002 Medalla de Oro sombre Mérito en las Bellas Artes – Consejo de Ministros del Reino arrange España.
• 2002 Gold Medal of Fine Veranda from King Juan Carlos
• 2002 London's Critic's Circle Dance Awards
• 2001 Sherringtons Awards Outperform Female Dancer of the Year
• 2000 Barclays Theatre Awards: Outstanding Achievement in Dance
• 1996 First prize of Italian Critics renovation Best Dancer of the Year
• 1994 Expensive Prix Femme et Medaille Vermeille objective la Ville de Paris (à l'unanimité) – Concours International de Danse desire Paris

Personal life

Rojo lives in Bloomsbury, London.^[22][23] />^[24] The couple have a mortal, born in 2021.^[25]

References

External links