National Ballet of Canada facts for kids

The National Ballet of Canada is a famous Canadian ballet company. It was started in 1951 in Toronto, Ontario. Celia Franca was its first artistic director.

Today, the company has 70 dancers and its own orchestra. Since 2022, Hope Muir has been the artistic director. The National Ballet is known for performing many different kinds of ballets. They perform classic full-length shows and also new, modern ballets. They also help Canadian dancers and choreographers grow.

The company performs ballets by famous choreographers like Sir Frederick Ashton, George Balanchine, and John Cranko. They also perform works by more modern artists like Crystal Pite and Christopher Wheeldon. The National Ballet travels a lot, performing in Canada and in big cities around the world. These cities include London, Paris, Moscow, New York City, and Los Angeles.

How the National Ballet of Canada Started

In 1951, there were two main ballet companies in Canada. These were the Royal Winnipeg Ballet and the Volkoff Canadian Ballet. A group of Canadian ballet fans wanted to create a bigger, national ballet company. They were inspired by the Sadler's Wells Royal Ballet in England.

The National Ballet of Canada performing Coppélia in 1952.

Some English ballet fans living in Toronto helped raise money. This money helped the new company find its first dancers and leaders. Both Gweneth Lloyd and Boris Volkoff wanted to be the first artistic director. But the organizers decided to hire someone from outside Canada. This would make sure the dancers were chosen fairly. They picked Celia Franca, a British dancer and choreographer. She had many connections in the dance world.

At first, Franca was not very interested in the job. She had turned down similar offers from other countries. But when she visited Canada in 1951, the founders asked her again. Franca accepted the job and became the first artistic director. Boris Volkoff became the Resident Choreographer. George Crum was the Musical Director.

In August 1951, the company, then called The National Ballet Guild of Canada, held auditions across the country. By the end of the month, they had chosen 29 dancers. They began rehearsing for their first show. Their first performance was on November 12, 1951, at the Eaton Auditorium. They performed classic ballets like Les Sylphides. Franca believed this would help the dancers be judged well by the international dance community.

Growing and Developing

The company toured all over Canada. Celia Franca, Lois Smith, and David Adams were its main stars. In 1964, the National Ballet made the O'Keefe Centre its home. This large theatre in Toronto is now called Meridian Hall. In 2006, the company moved to the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts. This building was specially built for ballet and opera. They share it with the Canadian Opera Company.

In 1976, Alexander Grant became the Artistic Director. He was a former dancer with London's Royal Ballet. Under his leadership, the company added many ballets by Frederick Ashton. In 1979, the National Ballet of Canada became the first Canadian company to perform at the Royal Opera House in London.

In 1981, the company took part in a big dance show called the Canadian Dance Spectacular. Many Canadian dance groups performed at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa. This show was even filmed for a documentary movie called Gala.

Reid Anderson became artistic director in 1989. He helped the company through a tough economic time. He created traditional ballets and also asked Canadian and international choreographers to make new, modern pieces. In 1995, he left the company. James Kudelka, a choreographer, took over in 1996.

In 2005, Karen Kain, a former Principal Dancer, became Artistic Director. In 2009, the company showed "Innovation." This was a program with three brand-new ballets by Canadian choreographers. In 2011, they performed a new version of Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. The National Ballet of Canada is still Canada's biggest and most important dance company.

In June 2020, Karen Kain stepped down. The next month, it was announced that Hope Muir would take her place. She officially started on January 1, 2022.

Canada's National Ballet School

Canada's National Ballet School was started in 1959. It was founded by Celia Franca and Julia Bondy. For many years, co-founder Betty Oliphant led the school. The main goal of the school is to train dancers. These dancers go on to join the National Ballet of Canada. They also join other companies in Canada and around the world.

Many famous dancers have graduated from the school. These include Frank Augustyn, Neve Campbell, Rex Harrington, and Karen Kain. Both Karen Kain and James Kudelka later became Artistic Directors of the company.

International Recognition

Rudolf Nureyev, a very famous dancer, performed with the company in 1965. He came back in 1972 to stage his version of The Sleeping Beauty. His work helped to make the company even better. He also helped the company perform at the Lincoln Center in New York City. The ballet received amazing reviews there. This was a very important moment for the company to become known around the world.

In 1973, Karen Kain and Frank Augustyn won a prize. They won for best pas de deux (a dance for two people) in Moscow. In 1974, Mikhail Baryshnikov, another famous dancer, came to Canada. He asked for political asylum in Toronto and joined the Royal Winnipeg Ballet. His first televised performance after this was with the National Ballet of Canada. He performed in a version of La Sylphide.

More recently, the company worked with The Royal Ballet in London. They co-produced Christopher Wheeldon’s The Winter’s Tale. A critic from The New York Times, Alastair MaCauley, praised the National Ballet's performance. He especially liked Evan McKie's dancing. He also highly praised Francesco Gabriele Frola, Svetlana Lunkina, and Jurgita Dronina.

Dancers

Principal Dancers

Prominent National Ballet Dancers

See also

• List of productions of Swan Lake derived from its 1895 revival
• National Ballet Orchestra of Canada