Natalia Osipova

Natalia Osipova
Natalia Osipova in an extract from Flames of Paris, at the reopening gala of the Bolshoi Theatre 2011
Born Natalia Petrovna Osipova
(1986-05-18) 18 May 1986
Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Education Moscow State Academy of Choreography (The Bolshoi Ballet Academy)
Occupation Ballet dancer
Current group The Royal Ballet
Former groups Bolshoi Ballet, Mikhailovsky Theatre

Natalia Petrovna Osipova (Russian: Ната́лья Петро́вна О́сипова; born 18 May 1986) is a Russian ballerina, currently performing as a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet in London.

Early life and training

Born in Moscow, Osipova began her formal ballet training at the age of eight at the Kiev Choreographic School and then was invited to complete her studies from 1996 to 2004 at the Moscow State Academy of Choreography (The Bolshoi Ballet Academy), under the tutelage of Marina Kotova and Marina Leonova.

Career

At the age of 18 she joined the Bolshoi Ballet as a member of the corps de ballet. In 2005 she danced the role of Kitri in Alexei Fadeyechev’s production of Don Quixote to much critical acclaim [1] and was promoted to soloist in 2006. She was named one of the “25 to Watch” by Dance Magazine in 2007,[2] was awarded the Prix Benois de la Danse in 2009 and promoted to leading soloist. In 2010, she became a principal dancer at the Bolshoi Ballet, but resigned from the company in 2011, citing “artistic freedom” as her reason for leaving.[3] She has also won two Golden Mask awards for her performances in In the Upper Room (2008) and La Sylphide (2009); three Critics’ Circle National Dance Awards for Best Female Dancer in 2007, 2010, and 2014 for Giselle, a role herald as the best of her generation; and a Benois de la Danse Award for Best Female Dancer in 2008.

After leaving the Bolshoi, she joined American Ballet Theatre as a guest dancer for their Metropolitan Opera House season. She danced Don Quixote with José Manuel Carreño, and both The Sleeping Beauty and Romeo and Juliet with David Hallberg.[4] A week before her performance in Sleeping Beauty, she was mugged outside the Met, but suffered only minor bruises and was able to perform. She lost only a pair of pointe shoes and a small hammer used to shape them.[5] In December 2011, she joined the Mikhailovsky Ballet.

On 8 April 2013, it was announced that Osipova would join The Royal Ballet as a principal dancer, having previously danced as a guest artist in Swan Lake. She cited the broader and more diverse repertoire as her primary motivation for the move.[6] She debuted on 21 November 2013, in Romeo and Juliet, partnered by Carlos Acosta. She has also danced in The Nutcracker and Giselle, with Acosta and Federico Bonelli.[7]

Repertoire

Osipova's debut as Kitri in Don Quixote on 7 November 2005 launched her solo career.

Awards

  • Richard Sherrington Award for Best Female Dancer
  • UK National Dance Awards
  • Golden Mask award as Best Female Dancer for Twyla Tharp's In The Upper Room
  • Positano Dance Award Leonide Massine Award for Best Duet in La Sylphide
  • The International Dance Association Prix Benois de la Danse
  • Golden Mask awards for her performances in In the Upper Room (2008) and La Sylphide (2009).
  • Critics’ Circle National Dance Awards: Best Female Dancer (2007, 2010, and 2014)
  • Benois de la Danse Award (Best Female Dancer, 2008).

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Большой театр". bolshoi.ru. Archived from the original on 2011-06-21.
  2. ↑ "25 to Watch". Dance Magazine. January 2007. Archived from the original on February 14, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  3. ↑ Wakin, Daniel J. (November 14, 2011). "Bolshoi Is Stung by Loss of Two Stars". The New York Times.
  4. ↑ Sulcas, Roslyn (June 17, 2010). "A Determined Ballerina, Propelled to the Top". The New York Times.
  5. ↑ Wakin, Daniel J. (June 15, 2010). "ABT Ballerina Is Attacked". The New York Times.
  6. ↑ Sulcas, Roslyn. "Russian Ballerina Natalia Osipova Joins London's Royal Ballet". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  7. ↑ "Giselle | Performers & Credits". Fathom Events. Archived from the original on February 1, 2014. Retrieved January 22, 2014.
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