Want to know more about life as a professional ballerina? We recently caught up with English National Ballet's First Artist Precious Adams about her life as a professional ballerina. Read on to find out more;
What performances/tours have you been involved in over the last year or so?
I have performed Macmillan's Song of the Earth in a mixed program with La Sylphide in the U.K. National tour, Elite Syncopations and Song of The Earth again at the Royal Opera House, Nutcracker at the London Coliseum, a mixed bill at Sadlers Wells in which I performed Azur Barton’s Fantastic Beings and William Forsythe’s Approximate Sonata. We went to Dublin with Akram Khans Giselle followed by Sleeping Beauty in London, at the Coliseum in June and finally we finished the season in Hong Kong with Akram Khans Giselle.
What countries have you travelled to with work?
I’m so fortunate to be with a company like English National Ballet that travels a lot, every year we do a National tour around England and an international tour in the spring. In the four years that I have been with ENB I have gone around the U.K., China, Singapore, HongKong, Oman, Colombia, New Zealand, Japan, Spain and France. This season we are touring in Russia and The United States which is great for me since I’m American I can go back to my birth country!
What has been your favourite role?
I have so many favourite roles! Pretty much any William Forsythe work I instantly love, I also really enjoyed dancing Macmillan’s Song of the Earth and Pina Bausch’s Rite of Spring.
How did you find the English National Ballet Emerging Dancer experience?
I found the emerging dancer experience to be so fulfilling and challenging. It was my first time dancing a full length classical pas de deux so I feel really fortunate to have reached that milestone in my career. We had to rehearse a lot at the end of our normal work day which was hard, but my love of dance and excitement for the opportunity kept me going! I loved it. It’s really fun being coached by your fellow dance colleagues as well because they’re experience and advice is so fresh and it’s like working with your friends.
How do you feel you have developed as a dancer over the past year?
I feel like I progressed massively last season! I have had so many opportunities that have given me invaluable experience and all those opportunities have made me work even better and smarter, those skills will all stay in my muscle memory.
What productions are you involved in this season?
This season I have preformed in Lest We Forget, Kenneth MacMillan’s
Manon, Derek Deane’s
Swan Lake and Wayne Eagling’s
Nutcracker, and am looking forward to She Persisted (a triple bill of works by Stina Quagebeur, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa and Pina Bausch), Christopher Wheeldon’s
Cinderella in-the-round, and Akrams Khans Giselle.
Get Precious's Look!
Strike a pose in the So Danca
crop top and
leggings and the Sansha dance sneakers.
Stun in Basilica with the
Onora leotard and the
Paccia dance skirt. And turn heads in the Bloch
halter neck leotard.
Look elegant in the sleeveless
Ramona by Basilica and the
all over lace leotard from So Danca.
Update your split sole ballet shoes with the
Bloch pump ballet shoe and the Grishko
all-over lace print ballet shoe.
Strike a pose in the So Danca crop top and leggings and the Sansha dance sneakers.
Stun in Basilica with the Onora leotard and the Paccia dance skirt. And turn heads in the Bloch halter neck leotard.
Look elegant in the sleeveless Ramona by Basilica and the all over lace leotard from So Danca.
Update your split sole ballet shoes with the Bloch pump ballet shoe and the Grishko all-over lace print ballet shoe.