TAMARA ROJO STAGE FAREWELL

Her career summarized in fifteen videos

Idea collected from the great article written by Amélie Bertrand «Adieux à la scène de Tamara Rojo: sa carrière en quinze vidéos» published in “Danses avec la plume”

Tamara Rojo, a huge Star of the 2000s and 2010s, bids farewell to the stage at 48 years old as a ballet dancer on October 14th at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, in the title role of Giselle by Akram Khan with English National Ballet. Director of this company since 2012, it was she who created this new version, one of the highlights of her years at the head of the company. In December, she will leave for San Francisco Ballet as the new Artistic Director and will no longer dance on stage. With remarkable sagacity, Amélie Bertrand has summed up Rojo’s brilliant career through 15 videos.

Arayan Daraxa by Victor Ullate

Born In Montreal, Canada, Tamara Rojo grew up in Madrid. It was there that she learned to dance, also in this city that she became a professional at the age of 17, when she joined the Víctor Ullate company in 1991. Three years later, she made herself known on the international scene by winning the Paris International Dance Competition, along with a Special Jury Prize from a panel that included Natalia Makarova, Galina Samsova, and Vladimir Vasiliev. In that contest she danced, among others, a solo of this choreography.

Romeo and Juliet by Kenneth MacMillan

In 1997 Tamara Rojo was invited by Galina Samsova as Guest Principal Dancer with Scottish Ballet. There she performed the leading roles in Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, La Sylphide, and Cranko’s Romeo and Juliet. Derek Deane, then artistic director of English National Ballet, asked her to join ENB the following year. For her, he created the roles of Juliet in “Romeo and Juliet” and Clara in “The Nutcracker” for which The Times named Rojo “Dance Revelation of the Year” in 1997. In 2000 the director of the Royal Ballet Anthony Dowell invited Tamara to join the company. One of her memorable roles was her portrayal of Juliet from the Kenneth MacMillan version.

Swan Lake by Marius Petipa

In both, ENB and the RB, Tamara danced the two versions of Swan Lake that these companies had in their repertoire. Here Black Swan pas de deux in a gala with Alban Lendorf.

Giselle by Marius Petipa d’après Jean Coralli et Jules Perrot

Between 2000 and 2012 she was a Royal Ballet Principal Dancer. She became one of the most emblematic Principals of the company. One of her first roles was Giselle, which also followed her throughout her career in its different versions, including Akram Khan’s version which she endorsed at ENB. Here in Act II, with Jose M. Carreño and the English National Ballet.

Don Quixote by Marius Petipa

Tamara Rojo becomes the essential Star, invited everywhere. In 2007, she participated at Julio Bocca’s farewell, in Argentina, with this emblematic Don Quixote pas de deux.

La Bayadère by Marius Petipa

At the Royal Ballet in London, Tamara Rojo performed all the great classical ballets of the repertoire. Here in the role of Nikiya, extract from La Bayadère.

Manon by Kenneth MacMillan

In addition to classical ballets, Tamara Rojo blends into the English repertoire, notably the great works of Kenneth MacMillan. And forms with Carlos Acosta one of the couples with the most outstanding scene of the years 2000. With him in Manon of Kenneth MacMillan.

Raymonda by Marius Petipa

For fun, the superb pas de deux by Raymonda – in a production very different from what we know in Paris – with Steven McRae.

Chroma by Wayne McGregor

While Tamara Rojo has explored a wide repertoire as a director, she has essentially devoted herself to classical technique during her career. This did not prevent her from working with modern choreographers. Here she dances Chroma by Wayne McGregor, surrounded by the brilliant generation of the Royal Ballet: Federico Bonelli, Sarah Lamb, Steven Mcrae, Laura Morera, Eric Underwood or Edward Watson.

La Sylphide by Auguste Bournonville

Always for fun, the pas de deux from La Sylphide by Auguste Bournonville with the brilliant Steven McRae.

Sleeping Beauty by Marius Petipa

English National Ballet – 2012.

Marguerite and Armand by Frederick Ashton

In 2013, Tamara Rojo returned to dance at the Royal Ballet for a proper farewell evening. She chose to leave with Marguerite et Armand by Frederick Ashton, in the company of Sergei Polunin, then a young dance star.

Le Corsaire by Anne-Marie Holmes after Marius Petipa

One of Tamara Rojo’s first major productions as director of English National Ballet was a lavish new production of Le Corsaire by Anna-Marie Holmes. This version has since toured a lot, notably at the Palais Garnier in 2016, where Tamara Rojo played the main role, at 42 years old. Here the main pas de deux with Cesar Corrales, discovered by the English National Ballet before going to the Royal Ballet, at a gala (which does not make all the beauty of this production).

Giselle by Akram Khan

The great success of Tamara Rojo at the head of the English National Ballet. A powerful reinterpretation of Giselle by Akram Khan, modern, also paying homage to the masterpiece of romantic ballet. Which has since been performed around the world. Here an excerpt from the first act, with Hilarion (Jeffrey Cirio) and Albrecht (James Streeter).

Daily Dance Dialogue – Prix de Lausanne

We could have continued these videos for a long time! So as a conclusion, here is the Daily Dance Dialogue, produced in 2013 at the Prix de Lausanne when the dancer was a member of the jury. A conversation about dance, her career, her vision of ballet… That says it all!