MEET THE NEWEST PRINCIPAL
When the curtain rose on Ballet West’s 2024-25 season, David Huffmire stepped onto the stage carrying a new title: Principal Artist. After years of dedication to his craft, the promotion marked both an achievement and the beginning of a new challenge – finding his identity as a principal dancer.
His inaugural season began with a transformative experience – performing the title role of the sinister Hyde in Jekyll and Hyde. The production consumed every aspect of his life, from his diet to his sleep schedule, even influencing how he practiced facial expressions.
“It was as immersive as a ballet can be,” Huffmire explains. “It took over every single part of my life. Everything that I was doing felt related to Hyde.”
The intensity of that experience carried him through a whirlwind of performances that included the company’s fall repertoire Pictures at an Exhibition, Nutcracker, the technically demanding role of Jester in Cinderella as well as Balanchine’s Apollo in the spring.
As Huffmire reflects on his first season in his new rank, he sees his journey as one of continual refinement. The corrections have been subtle, no longer needing to fix obvious technical flaws but polishing the finest details of his art and performance quality.
“You start to focus on fixing less obvious pieces of your craft. The shape a hand makes at the end of a line or the seeming simplicity of how you walk while portraying a character,” he says. “The details then start to become smaller, which is a sign that the journey is continuing in a positive direction, and that the problems you’re trying to solve are getting smaller, but transparent to the eye.”
Looking ahead to his second season as a Principal Artist, his goals include technical growth and a continuous artistic journey with a focus on mentoring younger dancers.
“One of my goals is maintaining my focus on being a good role model. I’ve found that it brings me joy and it keeps me calmer and focused on the bigger picture,” Huffmire says. “Being a teacher and mentor for the newer dancers in the company allows me to see my own art in a different light.”