The Dancers of Ballet West - Prinicipal Artists

CHRISTIANA BENNETT - Townsend, Massachusetts

Christiana, originally from Massachusetts, joined Ballet West as an artist in 1999 and quickly rose to the rank of soloist in 2003 and principal in 2004. Christiana's extensive training includes many prestigious schools such as Pennsylvania Ballet, School of American Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet. Before joining Ballet West, Christiana performed with Pacific Northwest Ballet and Commonwealth Civic Ballet, and was a guest artist for the City Ballet of Boston. She has received the Coca-Cola Foundation Arts Award and the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts award in dance.  While studying at PNB, she performed roles in Swan Lake, Firebird, Romeo and Juliet, Paquita, The Nutcracker and Concerto Barocco.

Since joining Ballet West, Christiana has performed Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty, Juliet in the World Premiere of Jonas Kåge's  Romeo and Juliet, Odette/Odile in Kåge’s award winning Swan Lake, as well as Myrthe in Kåge's World Premiere of Giselle. Additional roles include the Tough Girl in Anthony Tudor’s Echoing of Trumpets, the Third Principal Couple in Hans van Manen's Black Cake, principal roles in two of William Forsythe’s ballets - Artifact II and In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated. Many of her featured roles have come from such Balanchine ballets as A Midsummer’s Night Dream, The Four Temperaments, Who Cares?, Allegro Brillante, Concerto Barocco, Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, Theme and Variations, and most recently, Serenade.

Christiana’s portrayal of Caroline in Anthony Tudor’s Lilac Garden has won her international acclaim with her premiere at the Edinburgh International Festival.

Two of Christiana’s favorite moments from last season are performing George Balanchine’s Serenade at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., as well as, dancing in the world premiere of Christopher Ruud’s, One.