List Of Dance Personalities
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This is a work-in-progress partial list of people involved in dance.


Alphabetical


A

* Eleonora Abbagnato - Italian ballet dancer * Stella Abrera - Filipino-American ballet dancer *
Carlos Acosta Carlos Yunior Acosta Quesada (born 2 June 1973) is a Cuban-British ballet director and retired dancer who is director of the Birmingham Royal Ballet. He danced with many companies, including the English National Ballet, National Ballet o ...
- Cuban ballet dancer and artistic director of
Birmingham Royal Ballet Birmingham Royal Ballet (BRB) is one of the five major ballet companies of the United Kingdom, alongside The Royal Ballet, the English National Ballet, Northern Ballet and Scottish Ballet. Founded as the Sadler's Wells Theatre Ballet, the co ...
* Precious Adams - American ballet dancer * Carolina Agüero - Argentine ballet dancer *
Joo Won Ahn Joo Won Ahn (born 1993) is a South Korean ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre. Ahn was born in Wonju. He trained at the Y.J. Ballet People Academy and Sunhwa Arts School, then entered the Korea Nat ...
- South Korean ballet dancer *
Alvin Ailey Alvin Ailey Jr. (January 5, 1931 – December 1, 1989) was an American dancer, director, choreographer, and activist who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (AAADT). He created AAADT and its affiliated Alvin Ailey American Dance Cent ...
- modern choreographer * Heléne Alexopoulos - American ballet dancer *
Alicia Alonso Alicia Alonso (born Alicia Ernestina de la Caridad del Cobre Martínez del Hoyo; 21 December 1920 – 17 October 2019) was a Cuban prima ballerina assoluta and choreographer whose company became the Ballet Nacional de Cuba in 1955. She is bes ...
- Cuban
prima ballerina assoluta ''Prima ballerina assoluta'' is a title awarded to the most notable of female ballet dancers. To be recognised as a ''prima ballerina assoluta'' is a rare honour, traditionally reserved for the most exceptional dancers of their generation. Orig ...
* Alicia Amatriain - Spanish ballet dancer *
Dores André Dores André Rodríguez (born 1985) is a Spanish ballet dancer. She is currently a principal dancer at the San Francisco Ballet. Early life André was born in Vigo, Spain, to a professor and a doctor. When she was eleven, she was sent to a small ...
- Spanish ballet dancer * Elena Andreianova - considered the outstanding Russian ballerina of the romantic genre *
Gasparo Angiolini Gasparo Angiolini (7 February 1731 – 6 February 1803), real name Domenico Maria Gasparo, son of Francesco Angiolini and Maria Maddalena Torzi, was an Italian dancer, choreographer and composer. He was born in Florence and died in Milan. He is ...
- Italian ballet dancer, choreographer and theoretician *
Ann-Margret Ann-Margret Olsson (born 28 April 1941), credited as Ann-Margret, is a Swedish-American actress and singer with a career spanning seven decades. Her many screen roles include '' Pocketful of Miracles'' (1961), ''State Fair'' (1962), '' Bye Bye B ...
(no surname) - Swedish-American dancer, actress, and singer in
films A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of Visual arts, visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are gen ...
; ''
Viva Las Vegas ''Viva Las Vegas'' is a 1964 American rock and roll musical film directed by George Sidney, written by Sally Benson, choreographed by David Winters, and starring Elvis Presley, Ann-Margret, Cesare Danova, William Demarest and Nicky Blair ...
'' * Aesha Ash - American ballet dancer *
Merrill Ashley Linda Michelle Merrill (born December 2, 1950), known professionally as Merrill Ashley, is an American former ballet dancer and ''répétiteur''. She joined the New York City Ballet in 1967, was promoted to principal dancer in 1977, and retired i ...
- American ballet dancer *
Frederick Ashton Sir Frederick William Mallandaine Ashton (17 September 190418 August 1988) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer. He also worked as a director and choreographer in opera, film and revue. Determined to be a dancer despite the oppositio ...
- British ballet dancer and choreographer * Charles Askegard - American ballet dancer *
Adele Astaire Adele Astaire Douglass (born Adele Marie Austerlitz, later known as Lady Charles Cavendish; September 10, 1896 – January 25, 1981) was an American dancer, stage actress, and singer. After beginning work as a dancer and vaudeville performe ...
- American
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...
dancer and singer; Fred Astaire's dance partner, 1905–1931 *
Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz, May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, actor, singer, musician, choreographer, and presenter, whose career in stage, film, and television spanned 76 years. He is widely regarded as the "g ...
- American film and Broadway dancer, choreographer, singer and actor * Gary Avis - British ballet dancer * Silvia Azzoni - Italian ballet dancer


B

* Elisa Badenes - Spanish ballet dancer *
George Balanchine George Balanchine (; Various sources: * * * * born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze;, Romanization of Georgian, : April 30, 1983) was a Georgian-American ballet choreographer, recognized as one of the most influential choreographers ...
- choreographer credited for bridging classical and
modern Modern may refer to: History *Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Philosophy ...
ballet * Caroline Baldwin (born 1990) - American ballet dancer * Matthew Ball - British ballet dancer *
Ashley Banjo Ashley Modurotolu Banjo (born 4 October 1988) is an English dancer, choreographer, and television personality. He is the leader of the street dance troupe Diversity who won the third series of the television talent show ''Britain's ...
- choreographer and leader of Diversity (dance troupe) * Marie Barch (1744–1827) - first native Danish ballerina *
Aszure Barton Aszure Barton is a Canadian-born choreographer. Career Aszure Barton was born and raised in Alberta, Canada. She received her formal training at the National Ballet School in Toronto, where, as a student, she helped originate the ongoing Steph ...
- Canadian choreographer *
Mikhail Baryshnikov Mikhail Nikolayevich Baryshnikov ( rus, Михаил Николаевич Барышников, p=mʲɪxɐˈil bɐ'rɨʂnʲɪkəf; ; born January 27, 1948) is a Latvian and American dancer, choreographer, and actor. He was the preeminent male ...
- Russian ballet dancer *
Léonore Baulac Léonore Baulac (born 10 May 1990) is a French ballet dancer. She is an ''Danseur étoile, étoile'' at the Paris Opera Ballet. Early life Baulac was born in Paris to a Norwegian-born mother. When Baulac was ten, she did not participate in the en ...
- French ballet dancer *
Vytautas Beliajus Vytautas Finadar "Vyts" Beliajus (26 February 1908, Pakumprys – 20 September 1994) was a dancer, folk dance instructor, and choreographer, and is considered the father of international folk dancing in the United States. He specialized in Lithuan ...
- Lithuanian-American, considered the father of
international folk dance International folk dance includes Balkan dance, Middle Eastern dance, contra dance, Hungarian dance, polka, Chinese dance, and Japanese dance. Clubs featuring these ethnic dance genres are enjoyed by non-professional dancers for entertainment ...
* Jérémie Bélingard - French ballet dancer * Aran Bell - American ballet dancer *
Leanne Benjamin Leanne Faye Benjamin (born 13 July 1964) is a retired Australian ballet dancer who was a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet in London. She was appointed artistic director at the Queensland Ballet in 2024. She stepped down from the positio ...
- Australian ballet dancer * Hanna Berger - German-Austrian dancer and resistance fighter * Hannelore Bey - German ballet dancer * Joan Boada - Cuban ballet dancer *
Gertrud Bodenwieser Gertrud Bodenwieser (3 February 1890 – 10 November 1959), also known as "Gertrude", was a dancer, choreographer, dance teacher and pioneer of expressionist dance, expressive dance. Early life The daughter of Theodore and Maria Bondi, a wea ...
- Austrian dancer, choreographer, dance teacher and pioneer of
modern dance Modern dance is a broad genre of western concert dance, concert or theatrical dance which includes dance styles such as ballet, folk, ethnic, religious, and social dancing; and primarily arose out of Europe and the United States in the late 19th ...
*
Roberto Bolle Roberto Bolle (born 26 March 1975) is an Italian danseur. He is a principal dancer ''étoile'' at La Scala Theatre Ballet. Bolle also dances regularly as a guest artist with the world’s leading companies, including The Royal Ballet, the Ma ...
- Italian ballet dancer * Antoine Bournonville - French ballet dancer *
August Bournonville August Bournonville (21 August 1805 – 30 November 1879) was a Danish ballet master and choreographer. He was the son of Antoine Bournonville, a dancer and choreographer trained under the French choreographer, Jean Georges Noverre, and the ne ...
- Danish ballet dancer and choreographer * Julie Bournonville - ballet dancer *
Julio Bocca Julio Adrián Lojo Bocca (born March 6, 1967) is an Argentine ballet dancer. Bocca spent twenty years as a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre. From 2010 to 2018, he served as artistic director of the National Ballet of Uruguay, adminis ...
- Argentine ballet dancer *
Roberto Bolle Roberto Bolle (born 26 March 1975) is an Italian danseur. He is a principal dancer ''étoile'' at La Scala Theatre Ballet. Bolle also dances regularly as a guest artist with the world’s leading companies, including The Royal Ballet, the Ma ...
- Italian ballet dancer * Federico Bonelli - Italian ballet dancer * Hélène Bouchet - French ballet dancer *
Ashley Bouder Ashley Bouder (; born December 10, 1983) is an American ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer at the New York City Ballet. She also founded and currently runs her own project, The Ashley Bouder Project. Early life Ashley Bouder was ...
- American ballet dancer *
Kent Boyd ''So You Think You Can Dance'' is an American television reality program and dance competition airing on the Fox Broadcasting Company network. Season seven premiered on May 27, 2010. In the August 12 finale, contemporary/jazz contestant Lauren F ...
- American teen dancing sensation; runner-up of Season 7 of ''
So You Think You Can Dance ''So You Think You Can Dance'' is a franchise of reality television shows in which contestants compete in dance. The first series of the franchise, created by '' Idols'' producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, premiered in July 2005 and has ...
''; contemporary jazz, Broadway *
Isabella Boylston Hildur Isabella Boylston (born October 13, 1986) is an American ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre (ABT). Early life Boylston was born Hildur Isabella Boylston, named for an Icelandic great-grandm ...
- American ballet dancer *
Skylar Brandt Skylar Paley Brandt (born January 8, 1993) is an American ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre. Early life Skylar Brandt was born and raised in Purchase, New York. Her parents are Gary and Barbara B ...
- American ballet dancer *
James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...
- African American dancer, entertainer, singer, musician and songwriter *
Erik Bruhn Erik Belton Evers Bruhn (3 October 1928 – 1 April 1986) was a Danish ballet dancer, choreographer, artistic director, actor, and author. Early life Erik Bruhn was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, the fourth child and first son of Ellen (née Eve ...
- Danish ballet dancer and choreographer * Stéphane Bullion - French ballet dancer *
Cheryl Burke Cheryl Burke (born May 3, 1984) is an American dancer, model, and television host. She is best known for being a professional dancer on ABC's ''Dancing with the Stars''. She was the first female professional to win the show and the first prof ...
- American ballroom and Latin dancer *
Darcey Bussell Dame Darcey Andrea Bussell (born Marnie Mercedes Darcey Pemberton Crittle; 27 April 1969) is a retired English ballet dancer, ballerina and a former judge on the BBC television dance contest ''Strictly Come Dancing''. Trained at the Arts Educ ...
- British ballet dancer and TV presenter


C

* Rita Cadillac - Brazilian dancer and singer * Maria Calegari - American ballet dancer *
Claire Calvert Claire Louise Calvert (born 1988) is an English ballet dancer and is a first soloist at the Royal Ballet. Early life and training Calvert started ballet training at the age of three. She started attending The Royal Ballet School when she was 1 ...
- British ballet dancer * Alexander Campbell - Australian ballet dancer *
Leslie Caron Leslie Claire Margaret Caron (; born 1 July 1931) is a French and American actress and dancer. She is the recipient of a Golden Globe Award, two BAFTA Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards. Caron b ...
- French-born ballet dancer and American film actress * José Manuel Carreño - Cuban ballet dancer * Elisa Carrillo Cabrera - Mexican ballet dancer * Yvonne Cartier - British ballet dancer, mime and teacher *
Irene Castle Vernon and Irene Castle were a husband-and-wife team of ballroom dancers and dance teachers who appeared on Broadway and in silent films in the early 20th century. They are credited with reviving the popularity of modern dancing. Castle was a s ...
-
ballroom dance Ballroom dance is a set of European partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects. Ballroom dancing is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and te ...
r *
Vernon Castle Vernon and Irene Castle were a husband-and-wife team of ballroom dancers and dance teachers who appeared on Broadway and in silent films in the early 20th century. They are credited with reviving the popularity of modern dancing. Castle was a s ...
- ballroom dancer * Vakhtang Chabukiani - ballet dancer * Guru Chandrasekharan - Indian dancer *
Cyd Charisse Cyd Charisse (born Tula Ellice Finklea; March 8, 1922 – June 17, 2008) was an American dancer and actress. After recovering from polio as a child and studying ballet, Charisse entered films in the 1940s. Her roles usually featured her abilit ...
- American ballet and film dancer *
Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui (born 10 March 1976) is a Belgian dancer and choreographer and director. He has made over 50 choreographic pieces and received two Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production, three Ballet Tanz awards for best cho ...
- Belgian choreographer, artistic director of
Royal Ballet of Flanders The Royal Ballet of Flanders is a dance company based in Antwerp, Belgium, specializing in classical, neoclassical and contemporary ballet. In its current incarnation, the company was established in 1969. It tours internationally. History The ...
*
Yuhui Choe Yuhui Choe () is a Korean ballet dancer. She is a first soloist at The Royal Ballet. Early life Choe was born in Fukuoka, Japan. Choe started ballet training at the age of five. At the age of 14, Choe left her family and moved to Paris to tra ...
- Korean ballet dancer * Frances Chung - Canadian ballet dancer * Jeffrey Cirio - American ballet dancer * Lia Cirio - American ballet dancer * The Clark Brothers - tap dancers *
Alina Cojocaru Alina Cojocaru (born 27 May 1981) is a Romanian ballet dancer. She was previously a principal dancer with The Royal Ballet and a lead principal with the English National Ballet. Early years Alina Cojocaru was born and raised in Bucharest, Ro ...
- Romanian ballet dancer * Valentine Colasante - French ballet dancer * Deborah Colker - Brazilian writer, theater director, dancer and choreographer * Calico Cooper - American actress, dancer, and singer daughter of
Alice Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...
and Sheryl Cooper * Sheryl Cooper - American dancer and dance instructor, wife of Alice Cooper and mother of Calico Cooper * Jonathan Cope - British ballet dancer *
Misty Copeland Misty Danielle Copeland (born September 10, 1982) is an American ballet dancer for American Ballet Theatre (ABT), one of the three leading classical ballet companies in the United States. On June 30, 2015, Copeland became the first African Americ ...
- American ballet dancer * Bernice Coppieters - Belgian ballet dancer *
Jean Coralli Jean Coralli (15 January 1779 – 1 May 1854) was a French ballet dancer and choreographer, best known for collaborating with Jules Perrot in creating ''Giselle'' (1841), the quintessential Romantic ballet of the nineteenth century. Early lif ...
- French ballet dancer and choreographer *
Angel Corella Angel Corella López is a Spanish former principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre (the only Spaniard to have achieved such a position in history) and guest artist with The Royal Ballet, Kirov Ballet, New York City Ballet, La Scala and ...
- Spanish premier danseur * Erica Cornejo - Argentine ballet dancer * Herman Cornejo - Argentine ballet dancer * Cesar Corrales - Canadian ballet dancer *
Joaquín Cortés Joaquín Pedraja Reyes (known professionally as Joaquín Cortés; born 1969) is a Spanish classically trained ballet and flamenco dancer. Biography Cortes was born to a Gitano family in Córdoba and showed interest in dancing from an early ...
- Spanish ballet dancer and choreographer *
Guillaume Côté Guillaume Côté (born September 17, 1981) is a Canadian ballet dancer, choreographer, composer and artistic director. He is a principal dancer and a Choreographic Associate at the National Ballet of Canada. In February 2024, he announced that t ...
- Canadian ballet dancer and choreographer * J'aime Crandall - American ballet dancer *
John Cranko John Cyril Cranko (15 August 1927 – 26 June 1973) was a South African ballet dancer and choreographer with the Royal Ballet and the Stuttgart Ballet. Life and career Early life Cranko was born to Herbert and Grace Cranko in Rustenburg in ...
- South African ballet dancer and choreographer * Dick Crum - American prominent
folk dance A folk dance is a dance that reflects the life of the people of a certain country or region. Not all ethnic dances are folk dances. For example, Ritual, ritual dances or dances of ritual origin are not considered to be folk dances. Ritual dances ...
teacher *
Merce Cunningham Mercier Philip "Merce" Cunningham (April 16, 1919 – July 26, 2009) was an American dancer and choreographer who was at the forefront of American modern dance for more than 50 years. He frequently collaborated with artists of other discipl ...
- choreographer *
Lauren Cuthbertson Lauren Louise Cuthbertson (born 11 June 1984) is an English ballet dancer, ballerina and a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet in London. Early life and education Lauren Cuthbertson was born in Devon in 1984. She began studying dance at a ...
- English ballet dancer *
Sophie Chevigny Sophie Chevigny (12 May 177210 March 1855), known professionally as Mlle Chevigny was an 18th century French ballet dancer and mime who performed as a principal dancer at the Opéra de Paris. Early life Geneviève-Sophie Chevigny was born in Pari ...
, French ballet dancer * Isabella Cubas, Spanish dancer


D

*
Sophie Daguin Sophie Marguerite Daguin (26 March 1801 – 13 March 1881) was a French ballet dancer and choreographer. She spent her career in Sweden, where she became a star ballerina and ballet mistress of the Royal Swedish Ballet, and the principal of th ...
- ballet mistress and ballerina *
Dan Dailey Daniel James Dailey Jr. (December 14, 1915 – October 16, 1978) was an American actor and dancer. He is best remembered for a series of popular musicals he made at 20th Century Fox such as '' Mother Wore Tights'' (1947). Biography Early life D ...
- American film actor and dancer *
Jean Dauberval Jean Dauberval, a.k.a. Jean D’Auberval, (born Jean Bercher in Montpellier, 19 August 1742 – Tours, 14 February 1806), was a French dancer and ballet master. He is most noted for creating the ballet, ''La fille mal gardée'', one of the m ...
- French dancer and choreographer *
Shiamak Davar Shiamak Davar is an Indian choreographer, noted as one of the first to bring contemporary jazz and western forms of dance to India.David Dawson - British choreographer *
Igone de Jongh Igone de Jongh (born 9 September 1979) is a Dutch ballerina and a former principal dancer with the Dutch National Ballet. She is featured in the music video for Anouk (singer), Anouk's song Birds (Anouk song), ''Birds'', the official Netherlands i ...
- Dutch ballet dancer *
Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker Anne Teresa, Baroness De Keersmaeker (, born 1960 in Mechelen, Belgium, grew up in Wemmel) is a contemporary dance choreographer. The dance company constructed around her, , was in residence at La Monnaie in Brussels from 1992 to 2007. Biogra ...
*
Louis Deland Louis Joseph Marie Deland (25 April 1772 – 15 April 1823) was a Swedish ballet dancer, singer, actor, choreographer and ballet master in the Royal Swedish Ballet. He is often considered the first native male star in the Royal Swedish Ballet. ...
- ballet master, ballet dancer, choreographer * Patricia Delgado - American ballet dancer, ''répétiteur'' and teacher *
Michaela DePrince Michaela Mabinty DePrince (born Mabinty Bangura; January 6, 1995 – September 10, 2024) was a Sierra Leonean–American ballet dancer who danced with the Boston Ballet, the Dance Theatre of Harlem, and the Dutch National Ballet. DePrince rose ...
- Sierra Leonean-American ballet dancer *
Gaby Deslys Gaby Deslys (born Marie-Elise-Gabrielle Caire, 4 November 1881 – 11 February 1920) was a French singer and actress during the early 20th century. She selected her name for her stage career, and it is a contraction of ''Gabrielle of the Lil ...
- French ballroom dancer and actress * Sasha De Sola - American ballet dancer *
Prabhu Deva Prabhu Deva (born 3 April 1973) is an Indian dance choreographer, film director, producer and actor who has worked predominantly in Tamil language, Tamil, Hindi and Telugu language, Telugu language films also appeared in few Kannada and Malayal ...
- Indian dancer and choreographer *
Julie Diana Julie Diana Hench (born ) is an American ballet dancer, teacher, writer and arts administrator. She joined the San Francisco Ballet in 1993, and was promoted to principal dancer in 2000. In 2004, she joined the Pennsylvania Ballet, where she rema ...
- American ballet dancer, ballet master, writer and arts administrator * Charles-Louis Didelot - French dancer and choreographer *
Anton Dolin Anton Dolin may refer to: * Anton Dolin (ballet dancer) (1904–1983), English ballet dancer and choreographer * Anton Dolin (film critic) Anton Vladimirovich Dolin (; ) is a Russian film critic, journalist, radio host, blogger and podcaster. ...
- English ballet dancer and choreographer * Holly Dorger - American ballet dancer *
Anthony Dowell Sir Anthony James Dowell (born 16 February 1943) is a retired British ballet dancer and a former artistic director of the Royal Ballet. He is widely recognized as one of the great ''danseurs nobles'' of the twentieth century. Early life and tr ...
- English ballet dancer and choreographer *
Jurgita Dronina Jurgita Dronina (born 27 March 1986) is a Lithuanian ballet dancer. Until 2024, she was a principal dancer with the National Ballet of Canada, having previously danced with Royal Swedish Ballet, Dutch National Ballet and English National Ballet. ...
- Russian-Lithuanian ballet dancer *
Remo D'Souza Remo D'Souza (born Ramesh Gopi Nair; 2 April 1974) is an Indian choreographer, film director, and producer. Over the course of his career spanning more than 25 years, D'Souza has choreographed more than 100 films. He is considered the most suc ...
- Indian Bollywood choreographer *
Tabitha and Napoleon D'umo Tabitha A. D'umo (née Cortopassi) and Napoleon Buddy D'umo, known together as Nappytabs, are Emmy Award-winning married choreographers. They are best known for their choreography on the television show '' So You Think You Can Dance'' and for be ...
a.k.a. "Nappytabs" - dance teachers, choreographers, and creative directors *
Isadora Duncan Angela Isadora Duncan (May 26, 1877, or May 27, 1878 – September 14, 1927) was an American-born dancer and choreographer, who was a pioneer of modern contemporary dance and performed to great acclaim throughout Europe and the United States. Bor ...
- "mother of modern dance" *
Katherine Dunham Katherine Mary Dunham (June 22, 1909 – May 21, 2006) was an African American dancer, choreographer, anthropologist, and social activist. Dunham had one of the most successful dance careers of the 20th century and directed her own dance compan ...
- pioneer of black dance, anthropologist, dancer, choreographer, creator of the Dunham Technique *
Aurélie Dupont Aurélie Dupont (born 15 January 1973 in Paris) is a French ballet dancer who performed with the Paris Opera Ballet as an '' Étoile''. She began her career in dance in 1983 when she entered the Paris Opera Ballet School (''L’École de danse de ...
- French ballet dancer and artistic director of
Paris Opera Ballet The Paris Opera Ballet () is a French ballet company that is an integral part of the Paris Opera. It is the oldest national ballet company, and many European and international ballet companies can trace their origins to it. It is still regarded a ...
*
Irina Dvorovenko Irina Vladimirovna Dvorovenko (born August 28, 1973) is a retired ballet dancer and actress. She was a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre. Early life Dvorovenko was born in Kiev, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union (now Kyiv, Ukraine) an ...
- Ukrainian-American ballet dancer * Aurelia Dimier, French baller dancer


E

* Madeleine Eastoe - Australian ballet dancer * Andre Eglevsky - Russian-American ballet dancer and teacher; performed in Charles Chaplin's film ''Limelight'' *
Alexander Ekman Karl Wilhelm Alexander Ekman (born 1984) is a Swedish ballet dancer and choreographer. His choreographies have been performed by Les Ballets de Monte Carlo, the Boston Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, the Semperoper Ballett, the Nederlands Dan ...
- Swedish choreographer *
Jorma Elo Jorma Elo is a contemporary choreographer. Early life He was born 30 August 1961 in Helsinki, Finland. His father, Jaakko Elo, is a urological surgeon, mother Ruth Elo née Carlstedt, a dentist. Jorma Elo's partner since 1994 is Nancy Euveri ...
- Finnish choreographer * Fanny Elssler - Austrian ballet dancer and actress * Sorella Englund - ballet dancer


F

*
Adolfina Fägerstedt Adolfina Fägerstedt (31 August 1811 – 1902), was a Swedish ballerina. She was considered as one of the leading members of the Royal Swedish Ballet in the 1830s and 1840s. She became a student of the Royal Swedish Ballet in 1821, a figurante ...
- Swedish ballerina * Robert Fairchild - American ballet dancer and actor * Silas Farley - ballet dancer, choreographer and educator *
Suzanne Farrell Suzanne Farrell (born August 16, 1945) is a former American ballerina and the founder of the Suzanne Farrell Ballet at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Farrell began her ballet training as a child in Cincinnati. In 1960, she received a ...
- ballet dancer * Jane Farwell -
folk dance A folk dance is a dance that reflects the life of the people of a certain country or region. Not all ethnic dances are folk dances. For example, Ritual, ritual dances or dances of ritual origin are not considered to be folk dances. Ritual dances ...
teacher * Marie Favart - French ballet dancer *
Lorena Feijóo Lorena Feijóo (born ) is a Cuban former ballet dancer. Her dance career started in 1988 at the Cuban National Ballet, but left Cuba two years later for more opportunities. After stints at Ballet de Monterrey, Royal Ballet of Flanders and Joff ...
- Cuban ballet dancer *
Lorna Feijóo Lorna Feijóo (born ) is a Cuban former ballet dancer. Her career started at the Cuban National Ballet, where she rose through the ranks. She left Cuba in 2001, then spent two years with the Cincinnati Ballet, before joining the Boston Ballet i ...
- Cuban ballet dancer *
Alessandra Ferri Alessandra Ferri OMRI (born 6 May 1963) is an Italian prima ballerina. She danced with the Royal Ballet (1980–1984), American Ballet Theatre (1985–2007) and La Scala Theatre Ballet (1992–2007) and as an international guest artist, before ...
- Italian prima ballerina assoluta *
Nikisha Fogo Nikisha Fogo (born 1995) is a Swedish ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer with the San Francisco Ballet and previously a principal at the Vienna State Ballet. Early life Nikisha Fogo was born in Stockholm. Her mother is Swedish, wh ...
- Swedish ballet dancer *
Michel Fokine Michael Fokine ( – 22 August 1942) was a Russian choreographer and dancer. Career Early years Fokine was born in Saint Petersburg to a prosperous merchant and at the age of 9 was accepted into the Saint Petersburg Imperial Ballet Sch ...
- Russian choreographer *
Margot Fonteyn Dame Margaret Evelyn de Arias Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, DBE ( Hookham; 18 May 191921 February 1991), known by the stage name Margot Fonteyn (), was an English ballerina. She spent her entire career as a dancer with th ...
- foremost British ballerina and assoluta * Thomas Forster (dancer) - English ballet dancer *
Bob Fosse Robert Louis Fosse (; June 23, 1927 – September 23, 1987) was an American choreographer, dancer, filmmaker, and stage director. Known for his work on stage and screen, he is arguably the most influential figure in the field of jazz dance in th ...
- American dancer and musical theater choreographer * Alina Frasa - Finnish ballet dancer and choreographer * Francesco Gabriele Frola - Italian ballet dancer * Anine Frölich - Danish ballerina * Jovani Furlan - Brazilian ballet dancer


G

*
Mara Galeazzi Mara Galeazzi (born 1973) is an Italian ballet dancer actress and choreographer.She was a Principal Dancer of The Royal Ballet. Early life Galeazzi was born in Brescia, Italy. At age 10, she started ballet training at La Scala Theatre Ballet S ...
- Italian ballet dancer *
Louis Gallodier Louis Gallodier (c. 1734 – 6 June 1803) was a French ballet dancer and choreographer who spent the majority of his career in Sweden, where he was to have a great importance for the development of the ballet in Sweden as the ballet master of ...
- ballet master and choreographer *
Mathieu Ganio Mathieu Ganio (born 16 March 1984) is a French '' danseur étoile'' of the Paris Opera Ballet. Mathieu Ganio was born in Marseille, France, the son of Ballet National de Marseille principal dancers Dominique Khalfouni and Denys Ganio. He made hi ...
- French ballet dancer * Gonzalo Garcia - Spanish ballet dancer * Daniel Gaudiello - Australian ballet dancer * Asen Gavrilov - Bulgarian ballet dancer and choreographer *
Mitzi Gaynor Francesca Marlene de Czanyi von Gerber (September 4, 1931 – October 17, 2024), known professionally as Mitzi Gaynor, was an American actress, singer, and dancer. Her notable films included ''We're Not Married!'' (1952), ''There's No Business ...
- American film actress and dancer * Gisa Geert - Austrian actress and choreographer *
Yekaterina Geltzer Yekaterina Vasilyevna Geltzer (November 2, 1876 – December 12, 1962) was a prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Ballet who danced in the theatre from 1898 to 1935. She was the daughter of the famous Russian dancer Vasily Geltzer. She worked with Marius ...
- prima ballerina of the Bolshoi in the 1910s and 1920s *
Adeline Genée Dame Adeline Genée Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, DBE (born Anina Kirstina Margarete Petra Jensen; 6 January 1878  – 23 April 1970) was a Danish-British ballet dancer. Early years Anina Kirstina Margarete Petra Jens ...
- Danish ballet dancer * Angelica Generosa - American ballet dancer * Yvonne Georgi - German ballet dancer * Elizaveta Gerdt - Russian dancer and teacher *
Pavel Gerdt Pavel Andreyevich Gerdt (), also known as Paul Gerdt (22 November 1844, near Saint Petersburg, Russia – 12 August 1917, in Vamaloki, Finland, Russian Republic), was the ''Premier Danseur Noble'' of the Mariinsky Ballet, Imperial Ballet, the Bol ...
- "Prince of the St Petersburg stage" *
Dorothée Gilbert Dorothée Gilbert (born 25 September 1983) is a principal dancer with the Paris Opera Ballet. Training * 1990-1995 Toulouse National Conservatoire * 1995-2000 Paris Opéra Ballet School *2000 Joins the Corps de Ballet of the Paris Opéra * 2002 ...
- French ballet dancer * Marie-Agnès Gillot - French ballet dancer and choreographer *
Ailes Gilmour Ailes Gilmour (January 27, 1912 – April 16, 1993) was a Japanese Americans, Japanese American dancer who was one of the young pioneers of the American Modern dance, Modern Dance movement of the 1930s. She was one of the first members of Martha ...
- early Martha Graham dancer, socialist activist, and sister of
Isamu Noguchi was an American artist, furniture designer and Landscape architecture, landscape architect whose career spanned six decades from the 1920s. Known for his sculpture and public artworks, Noguchi also designed stage sets for various Martha Grah ...
*
Céline Gittens Céline Gittens is a Trinidadian ballerina. She is a principal dancer at the Birmingham Royal Ballet, in Birmingham, England. Life Gittens was born in Trinidad, where her mother was a ballet teacher; her father was an accountant. She began ...
- Trinidadian ballet dancer * Alexander Godunov - Russian dancer who defected to the West * Matthew Golding - Canadian ballet dancer * Jeffrey Golladay - American ballet dancer * Chachi Gonzales - American
hip-hop dance Hip hop dance is a range of street dance styles primarily performed to hip-hop, hip hop music or that have evolved as part of hip-hop culture, hip hop culture. It is influenced by a wide range of styles that were created in the 1970s and made po ...
r *
Betty Grable Elizabeth Ruth Grable (December 18, 1916 – July 2, 1973) was an American actress, pin-up girl, dancer, model, and singer. Her 42 films during the 1930s and 1940s grossed more than $100 million, and for 10 consecutive years (1942–1951) she p ...
- American film actress and dancer *
Alicia Graf Mack Alicia Graf Mack (''née'' Alicia J. Graf, born 1978/1979) is an American dancer, teacher, and artistic director. She was a member of Dance Theatre of Harlem and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and has performed with Beyonce, John Legend, a ...
- American dancer *
Martha Graham Martha Graham (May 11, 1894 – April 1, 1991) was an American modern dancer, teacher and choreographer, whose style, the Graham technique, reshaped the dance world and is still taught in academies worldwide. Graham danced and taught for over s ...
- American dancer and choreographer * Carolina Granberg - Swedish ballerina *
Yury Grigorovich Yury Nikolayevich Grigorovich (; 2 January 1927 – 19 May 2025) was a Soviet and Russian ballet dancer, ballet master, choreographer, and pedagogue who dominated the Russian ballet for 30 years, especially as artistic director of the Bolshoi B ...
- Russian dancer, choreographer and artistic director * Fabio Grossi - Italian ballet dancer * Victor Gsovsky - Russian ballet dancer and choreographer * Sylvie Guillem - French ballet dancer


H

* Craig Hall - American ballet dancer * David Hallberg - American ballet dancer *
Anna Halprin Anna Halprin (born Hannah Dorothy Schuman; July 13, 1920 – May 24, 2021) was an American choreographer and dancer. She helped redefine dance in postwar America and pioneer the experimental art form known as postmodern dance and referred to her ...
- American postmodern dancer and teacher *
Melissa Hamilton Melissa Hamilton (born 2 August 1989) is a Northern Irish ballet dancer and a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet, London. Early life Hamilton was born in Belfast and spent most of her childhood in Dromore, County Down. Her father is a buil ...
- Irish ballet dancer *
MC Hammer Stanley Kirk Burrell (born March 30, 1962), better known by his stage name MC Hammer (or simply Hammer), is an American rapper known for hit songs such as "U Can't Touch This", "2 Legit 2 Quit", and "Pumps and a Bump", flashy dance movements, e ...
- American hip hop dancer, rapper and choreographer * Christopher Hampson - English ballet dancer and choreographer, artistic director of
Scottish Ballet Scottish Ballet is the national ballet company of Scotland and one of the five leading ballet companies of the United Kingdom, alongside the Royal Ballet, English National Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet and Northern Ballet. Founded in 1 ...
*
Mata Hari Margaretha Geertruida MacLeod (, ; 7 August 187615 October 1917), better known by the stage name Mata Hari ( , ; , ), was a Dutch Stripper, exotic dancer and courtesan who was convicted of being a spy for German Empire, Germany during World War ...
- Dutch born dancer, courtesan and alleged spy * Evelyn Hart - ballet dancer * Sarah Hay - American actress and ballet dancer * Francesca Hayward - British ballet dancer *
Rita Hayworth Rita Hayworth (born Margarita Carmen Cansino; October 17, 1918May 14, 1987) was an American actress, dancer, and Pin-up model, pin-up girl. She achieved fame in the 1940s as one of the top stars of the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of ...
- American film dancer and actress * Robyn Hendricks - South African ballet dancer *
Robert Helpmann Sir Robert Murray Helpmann (né Helpman) (9 April 1909 – 28 September 1986) was an Australian ballet dancer, actor, director, and choreographer. After early work in Australia he moved to Britain in 1932, where he joined the Vic-Wells Ballet (no ...
- ballet dancer *
Susan Hendl Susan Coxe Hendl (September 18, 1947 – October 12, 2020) was an American ballet dancer and ''répétiteur''. She danced with the New York City Ballet between 1963 and 1983, then staged and coached works by George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins ...
- American ballet dancer and ''répétiteur'' *
Heike Hennig Heike Hennig (born 8 November 1966) is a German dancer, choreographer and director of the opera and dance ensemble "Heike Hennig & Co". Life Heike Hennig had her first dance lessons at the age of 5 years in Leipzig of East Germany, studied modern ...
- German dancer and choreographer *
Audrey Hepburn Audrey Kathleen Hepburn ( Ruston; 4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993) was a British actress. Recognised as a film and fashion icon, she was ranked by the American Film Institute as the third-greatest female screen legend from the Classical Holly ...
- ballerina and movie star * Isaac Hernández - Mexican ballet dancer * Paloma Herrera - Argentine ballet dancer and artistic director of Colon Theater Ballet *
Laurent Hilaire Laurent Hilaire (; born 8 November 1962) is a French ballet dancer. Regarded as one of the greatest dancers to emerge from ballet over the past few decades, he was an '' étoile'' of the Paris Opera Ballet for 22 years. From 2011, he was the asso ...
- French ballet dancer, ballet master and associate director of the
Paris Opera Ballet The Paris Opera Ballet () is a French ballet company that is an integral part of the Paris Opera. It is the oldest national ballet company, and many European and international ballet companies can trace their origins to it. It is still regarded a ...
*
Ryoichi Hirano Ryoichi Hirano (平野 亮一, born 1983/84) is a Japanese ballet dancer who is a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet in London. Early life Hirano was born in Osaka. He had his ballet training at his mother's dance school. His brother was a ...
- Japanese ballet dancer * Hedda Hjortsberg - ballet dancer * Greta Hodgkinson - American-Canadian ballet dancer *
Hilde Holger Hilde Boman-Behram (née Hilde Sofer, stage name Hilde Holger; 18 October 1905 – 22 September 2001) was an expressionist dancer, choreographer and dance teacher whose pioneering work in Physically integrated dance, integrated dance transfor ...
- Austro-British expressionist dancer, choreographer, and pioneer of
physically integrated dance The physically integrated dance movement is part of the disability culture movement, which recognizes and celebrates the first-person experience of disability, not as a medical model construct but as a social phenomenon, through artistic, litera ...
* Anna Sophia Holmstedt - ballet dancer * Melissa Hough - American ballet dancer * Dulcie Howes - South African ballet dancer and founder of Cape Town City Ballet *
Nikolaj Hübbe Nikolaj Hübbe (born 30 October 1967) was artistic director of the Royal Danish Ballet until 31 October 2024 when the American Amy Watson was appointed as his replacement. Career Since becoming artistic director of the Royal Danish Ballet, Hüb ...
- Danish ballet dancer, artistic director of
Royal Danish Ballet The Royal Danish Ballet ( Danish: ''Den Kongelige Ballet'') is an internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Danish Theatre in Kongens Nytorv, Copenhagen, Denmark. It is one of the oldest ballet companies in the world a ...
* Catherine Hurlin - American ballet dancer *
Sterling Hyltin Sterling Hyltin is an American ballet dancer. She was a principal dancer at the New York City Ballet. Early life and training Hyltin was born in Amarillo, Texas. She wanted to be a figure skater, and would train before school started. However, H ...
- American ballet dancer


I

* Carrie Imler - American ballet dancer


J

*
Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...
- American dancer, choreographer, actor and singer *
Kevin Jackson Kevin Andre Jackson (born November 25, 1964) is an American retired freestyle and folkstyle wrestler, and mixed martial artist. Following his competitive career, Jackson would become a wrestling coach. During his international career, Jackso ...
- Australian ballet dancer *
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...
- American dancer, choreographer, singer and entertainer * Rowena Jackson - New Zealand prima ballerina of the
Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded ...
* Drew Jacoby - American contemporary ballet dancer *
Zizi Jeanmaire Renée Marcelle "Zizi" Jeanmaire (29 April 1924 – 17 July 2020) was a French ballet dancer, actress and singer. She became famous in the 1950s after playing the title role in the ballet ''Carmen'', produced in London in 1949, and went on to a ...
- French ballet dancer * Whitney Jensen - American ballet dancer * Lana Jones - Australian ballet dancer * Raghav Juyal - unique dancer in India, known for an imitative dance style, choreographer, dancer and also known for slo-motion dance style.


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*
Karen Kain Karen Alexandria Kain (born March 28, 1951) is a Canadian former ballet dancer and was the Artistic Director of the National Ballet of Canada from 2005 to 2021. Early training and childhood Kain's mother enrolled her daughter in ballet trainin ...
- Canadian prima ballerina *
Yuriko Kajiya Yuriko Kajiya (加治屋百合子 ''Kajiya Yuriko'', born 1984) is a Japanese ballet dancer who currently performs as a principal (ballet), principal dancer with Houston Ballet. Prior to joining Houston Ballet, she danced as a soloist with Americ ...
- Japanese ballet dancer *
Fumi Kaneko Fumi Kaneko (金子 扶生, ''Kaneko Fumi'', born October 1991) is a Japanese ballet dancer. She joined the Royal Ballet in London in 2011, and was named a principal dancer in 2021. Early life Kaneko was born and raised in Osaka. She started bal ...
- Japanese ballet dancer * Kang Sue-jin - Korean ballet dancer *
Vera Karalli Vera Alexeyevna Karalli (; 27 July 1889 – 16 November 1972) was a Russian people, Russian ballet dancer, choreographer and silent film actress during the early years of the 20th century. Early life and career Born in Moscow, Karalli gradua ...
- ballet dancer and actress *
Gene Kelly Eugene Curran Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American dancer, actor, singer, director and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style and sought to create a new form of American dance accessibl ...
- American film and stage dancer, choreographer, singer, actor and film director * Julie Kent - American ballet dancer and artistic director of The Washington Ballet * Akram khan - English dancer and choreographer *
Farah Khan Farah Khan Kunder (; born 9 January 1965) is an Indian film director, writer, film producer, actress, dancer and choreographer who works predominantly in Hindi films. Khan has choreographed more than a hundred songs in over 80 films, winning th ...
- Indian Bollywood choreographer and filmmaker *
Saroj Khan Saroj Khan fondly known as Masterji (born Nirmala Nagpal; 22 November 1948 – 3 July 2020) was an Indian dance choreographer in Hindi cinema. She was born in Bombay State (present day Maharashtra), India. She was best known for the danc ...
- Indian Bollywood choreographer *
Michael Kidd Michael Kidd (August 12, 1915 – December 23, 2007) was an American film and stage choreographer, dancer and actor, whose career spanned five decades, and who staged some of the leading Broadway and film musicals of the 1940s and 1950s. Kidd, s ...
- American Broadway and film choreographer and dancer * Ty King-Wall - New Zealand ballet dancer *
Gelsey Kirkland Gelsey Kirkland (born December 29, 1952) is an American prima ballerina. She received early ballet training at the School of American Ballet. Kirkland joined the New York City Ballet in 1968 at age 15, at the invitation of George Balanchine. She ...
- former legendary American Ballet Theatre and Principal dancer with the
New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company's fir ...
* Nehemiah Kish - American ballet dancer * Daria Klimentová - Czech ballet dancer, teacher and photographer * Hikaru Kobayashi - Japanese ballet dancer *
Maria Kochetkova Maria Olegovna Kochetkova (; born 1984) is a Russian ballet dancer. She was a principal dancer with the San Francisco Ballet between 2007 and 2018, and with the American Ballet Theatre between 2015 and 2017. After that, she became a freelance da ...
- Russian ballet dancer * Ako Kondo - Japanese ballet dancer *
Carla Körbes Carla Körbes is a Brazilian ballet dancer who performed as a principal dancer with the Pacific Northwest Ballet, then became the associate artistic director of L.A Dance Project. She is now an associate professor at Indiana University Jacobs ...
- Brazilian ballet dancer *
Maria Kowroski Maria Kowroski is an American ballet dancer. She was a principal dancer at the New York City Ballet. Early life Kowroski was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She started ballet at the age of five. In 1992, she entered the School of American Ballet ...
- American ballet dancer *
Gertrud Kraus Gertrud Kraus (; 5 May 1901 – 13 November 1977) was an Israeli pioneer of modern dance in Israel. Biography Gertrud Kraus was born in 1901 in Vienna, Austria-Hungary. Her father, Leopold Kraus, and her mother, Olga (née Neubauer), married ...
- Israeli pioneer of modern dance * Rebecca Krohn - American ballet dancer *
Mathilde Kschessinska Mathilde-Marie Feliksovna Kschessinska ( – 6 December 1971), also known as Princess Romanovskaya-Krasinskaya upon her marriage, was a Polish-Russian ballerina from the noble Krzesiński family. Her father, Felix Kschessinsky, her brother and ...
- second ''
prima ballerina assoluta ''Prima ballerina assoluta'' is a title awarded to the most notable of female ballet dancers. To be recognised as a ''prima ballerina assoluta'' is a rare honour, traditionally reserved for the most exceptional dancers of their generation. Orig ...
'' * Misa Kuranaga - Japanese ballet dancer * Stephanie Kurlow - first Hijabi ballerina *
Jiří Kylián Jiří Kylián (born 21 March 1947) is a Czech former dancer and contemporary dance choreographer. He is considered one of the greatest contemporary dance choreographers in Czech history. Life Jiří Kylián was born in 1947 in Prague, Czecho ...
- Czech choreographer


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*
Rudolf Laban Rudolf (von) Laban, also known as Rudolph von Laban (; 15 December 1879 – 1 July 1958), was an Austro-Hungarian dance artist, choreographer, and movement theorist. He is considered a "founding father of expressionist dance" and a pioneer of ...
- choreographer, inventor of
Labanotation Labanotation (grammatically correct form "Labannotation" or "Laban notation" is uncommon) is a system for analyzing and recording human movement (Notation, notation system), invented by Austro-Hungarian choreographer and dancer Rudolf von Laban ...
*
Lucia Lacarra Lucia may refer to: Arts and culture * ''Lucía'', a 1968 Cuban film by Humberto Solás * ''Lucia'' (film), a 2013 Indian Kannada-language film ** ''Enakkul Oruvan'' (2015 film), its 2015 Tamil-language remake, also known as ''Lucia'' * '' L ...
- Spanish ballet dancer * Eddie Ladd - Welsh Physical Theatre performer and dancer *
Sarah Lamb Sarah Lamb (born 17 October 1980) is an American principal ballet dancer with The Royal Ballet, London. Early life Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Lamb is the second of three daughters born to Kathleen and John Lamb. Her father is English an ...
- American ballet dancer * Jean-Baptiste Landé - founder of the Russian ballet * Sarah Lane - American ballet dancer * Tina LeBlanc - American ballet dancer, teacher and ballet master *
Louise Lecavalier Louise Lecavalier OC (born October 3, 1958) is a Canadian dancer known as one of the icons of Canadian contemporary dance. Biography Lecavalier was born and raised in Montreal, Quebec. She began her professional dance career at the age of ei ...
- icon of Canadian
contemporary dance Contemporary dance is a genre of Concert dance, dance performance that developed during the mid-twentieth century and has since grown to become one of the dominant genres for formally trained dancers throughout the world, with particularly stron ...
* Douglas Lee - British ballet dancer and choreographer * Leejung Lee - South Korean choreographer *
Manuel Legris Manuel Legris (born 10 October 1964) is a French ballet dancer. He was a danseur étoile (principal dancer) with the Paris Opera Ballet for 23 years. On 1 September 2010, he became the director of the Vienna State Ballet. In December 2020, he ...
- French ballet dancer and artistic director of
Vienna State Ballet Vienna State Ballet, ''Wiener Staatsballett'', is considered one of the world's top ballet companies. It was formerly named the Vienna State Opera Ballet as it is based at the Vienna State Opera building. In 2005 the ballets of the Vienna State ...
*
Pierina Legnani Pierina Legnani (30 September 1863 – 15 November 1930) was an Italian ballerina considered one of the greatest ballerinas of all time. Biography Legnani was born in 1863, in Milan and originally studied with famous ballet dancer Caterina B ...
- first ''
prima ballerina assoluta ''Prima ballerina assoluta'' is a title awarded to the most notable of female ballet dancers. To be recognised as a ''prima ballerina assoluta'' is a rare honour, traditionally reserved for the most exceptional dancers of their generation. Orig ...
'' *
Sara Leland Sally Harrington (August 2, 1941 – November 28, 2020), known professionally as Sara Leland, was an American ballet dancer and ''répétiteur''. She started her career with the Joffrey Ballet in 1959, and was recruited to join the New York City ...
- American ballet dancer and ''répétiteur'' *
Alban Lendorf Alban Lendorf (7 September 1989) is a Danish ballet dancer, choreographer, and actor, who was a principal with the Royal Danish Ballet and the American Ballet Theatre. He was also a guest artist with the English National Ballet and the Stanislavs ...
- Danish ballet dancer *
Nicolas Le Riche Nicolas Le Riche (born 29 January 1972, in Sartrouville, Yvelines) is a French ballet dancer, choreographer and ballet director. Biography Le Riche entered the Paris Opera Ballet school at age ten and joined the corps de ballet six years later; hi ...
- French ballet dancer and choreographer *
Lawrence Leritz Lawrence Leritz (born September 26, 1952) is an American actor, dancer, singer, producer, director, fitness expert and choreographer. Life and career Born in Alton, Illinois, Leritz made his stage debut in the children's chorus of the world stag ...
- American dancer and choreographer * Agnès Letestu - French ballet dancer * Tracy Li - Chinese ballet dancer; a senior principal in the Cape Town City Ballet, South Africa *
Edwaard Liang Edwaard Liang (born c. 1975/1976 Also available a. in Taipei, Taiwan) is a Taiwanese-born American dancer and choreography, choreographer. He grew up in Marin County, California. Career Liang began studying dance at the age of 5. He entered the ...
- Taiwanese-born American dancer and choreographer *
Serge Lifar Serge Lifar (, ''Serhіy Mуkhailovуch Lуfar'') ( 15 December 1986) was a Ukrainian dancer, choreographer, and one of the greatest male ballet dancers of the 20th century. Lifar was also a choreographer, director, writer, theoretician abou ...
- Ukrainian ballet dancer and choreographer * Maude Lloyd - South African ballerina and dance critic * Elena Lobsanova - Russian-Canadian ballet dancer *
Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of her time, credited with breaking ...
- American (Puerto Rican descent) dancer, singer and actress *
Annabelle Lopez Ochoa Annabelle Lopez Ochoa (born 30 April 1973) is a Belgian-Colombian international ballet dancer and choreographer based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Dance background Born in Antwerpen to a Colombian father and a Belgian mother, Lopez Ochoa completed ...
- Belgian choreographer *
Lydia Lopokova Lydia Lopokova, Baroness Keynes (born Lidiya Vasilyevna Lopukhova, ; 21 October 1891 – 8 June 1981) was a Russian ballerina famous during the early 20th century. Lopokova trained at the Imperial Ballet School. She toured with the Ballets Russ ...
- Russian ballet dancer * Lauren Lovette - American ballet dancer and choreographer * Svetlana Lunkina - Russian ballet dancer


M

* Brooklyn Mack - American ballet dancer * Mayara Magri - Brazilian ballet dancer * Shantanu Maheshwari - Indian dancer, choreographer and actor * Natascha Mair - Austrian ballet dancer *
Natalia Makarova Natalia Romanovna Makarova (, born 21 November 1940) is a Russian prima ballerina and choreographer. ''The History of Dance'', published in 1981, notes that "her performances set standards of artistry and aristocracy of dance which mark her a ...
- Russian ballet dancer * David Makhateli - Georgian ballet dancer *
Maia Makhateli Maia Makhateli (born November 5, 1985) is a Georgian ballet dancer. After terms with the Colorado Ballet and the Birmingham Royal Ballet, she joined the Dutch National Ballet in 2006, where she now is a principal dancer. Early life Makhateli ...
- Georgian ballet dancer *
Marianna Malińska Marianna Malińska, also called ''Marianna Malewiczówna'' (1767-fl.1797), was a Polish ballerina. She was the first native ballerina in Poland. Marianna Malińska was a serf of count Antoni Tyzenhauz on his estate in Grodno and Postawy, and plac ...
(1767–fl.1797) - first native ballerina in Poland * Hugo Marchand - French ballet dancer * Paul Marque - French ballet dancer *
Roberta Marquez Roberta Marquez is a Brazilian ballet dancer who was a Principal Dancer with The Royal Ballet. Early life Roberta Marquez was born in Rio de Janeiro to a Peruvian mother and a to a Portuguese father who was raised in Brazil. She started ballet ...
- Brazilian ballet dancer *
Cathy Marston Cathy Marston (born 1975) is a British choreographer and artistic director. She was the director of Bern Ballett from 2007–2013. After her tenure, she has choreographed for companies worldwide, including The Royal Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, ...
- British choreographer * Sophie Martin - French ballet dancer * Kizzy Matiakis - English ballet dancer * José Martínez - Spanish ballet dancer * William Matons - WPA-era, 1930s modern dancer and choreographer, known later during Calypso craze as Calypso Joe, and later still as General Hershy Bar * Sabrina Matthews - Canadian ballet choreographer and former ballet dancer *
Kay Mazzo Kay Mazzo (born January 17, 1946) is an American former ballet dancer and educator. In 1961, she joined Jerome Robbins' company, Ballets USA. The following year, she joined the New York City Ballet and was promoted to principal dancer in 1969. Sh ...
- American ballet dancer and educator, Chairman of Faculty of
School of American Ballet The School of American Ballet (SAB) is the associate school of the New York City Ballet, a ballet company based at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. The school trains students from the age of six, with professional voc ...
*
David McAllister David James McAllister (born 12 January 1971) is a German politician who has been a member of the European Parliament since 2014. He is a member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), part of the European People's Party. He is the current vi ...
- Australian ballet dancer, former artistic director of
The Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet (TAB) is the largest classical ballet company in Australia. It was founded by J. C. Williamson Theatres Ltd and the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in 1962, with the English-born dancer, teacher, repetiteur a ...
*
Wayne McGregor Sir Wayne McGregor, CBE (born 12 March 1970) is a British choreographer and director who has won multiple awards. He is the Artistic Director of Studio Wayne McGregor and Resident Choreographer of The Royal Ballet. McGregor was appointed Comma ...
- British choreographer *
Trey McIntyre Trey McIntyre (born November 12, 1969) is an American dancer and choreographer, who has a body of work that includes around 100 original dance pieces. He founded and acts as president of Trey McIntyre Project, a dance company that was based in B ...
- American dancer and choreographer *
Amanda McKerrow Amanda McKerrow (born 1964) is an American ballet dancer. She was a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre (ABT) where she currently teaches. In 1981 she became the first American to win a gold medal at the Moscow International Ballet C ...
- American ballet dancer * Rachael McLaren - Canadian dancer *
Steven McRae Steven McRae (born 19 December 1985) is an Australian ballet dancer and tap dancer. He is a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet, London.
- Australian ballet dancer *
Tate McRae Tate Rosner McRae (born July 1, 2003) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and dancer. She first gained prominence as the first Canadian finalist on the American reality television series ''So You Think You Can Dance (American TV series), So You Th ...
- first-ever Canadian finalist in ''
So You Think You Can Dance ''So You Think You Can Dance'' is a franchise of reality television shows in which contestants compete in dance. The first series of the franchise, created by '' Idols'' producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, premiered in July 2005 and has ...
'' *
Sara Mearns Sara Ann Mearns (born 19 January 1986) is an American ballet dancer. She is a principal dancer at New York City Ballet. Early life Mearns was born in Columbia, South Carolina. Her mother is a nurse. At age three, she began dancing with Ann Brodi ...
- American ballet dancer * Vrushika Mehta - Indian contemporary dancer and television actress * Itziar Mendizabal - Spanish ballet dancer *
Sulamith Messerer Sulamith Mikhailovna Messerer, OBE (, 27 August 1908, Moscow3 June 2004, London) was a Russian ballerina and choreographer who laid the foundations for the classical ballet in Japan. Biography Sulamith Messerer was born into the Lithuanian Jewis ...
- founder of Japanese ballet * Jo Mihaly - German dancer and writer *
Ann Miller Ann Miller (born Johnnie Lucille Collier; April 12, 1923 – January 22, 2004) was an American actress and dancer. She is best remembered for her work in the classical Hollywood cinema musical film, musicals of the 1940s and 1950s. Her early fi ...
- American tap dancer, singer, and actress, especially in films * Arthur Mitchell - American artistic director, educator, choreographer and dancer *
Shakti Mohan Shakti Mohan is an Indian dancer, choreographer and television personality. She is the winner of Zee TV's dance reality show '' Dance India Dance 2''. She has been a judge and captain of Indian reality show '' Dance Plus'' since its inception,' ...
- Indian contemporary dancer and winner of ''Dance India Dance 2'' * Baisali Mohanty - Indian classical dancer and choreographer *
Pippa Moore Samantha Pippa Moore (born ) is an English ballet dancer. She joined the Northern Ballet in 1996, was promoted to premier dancer in 2009 and retired in 2019. She now works as artistic and learning assistant with the Northern Ballet. Early life ...
- English ballet dancer *
Laura Morera Laura Morera is a Spanish ballet dancer who was a principal dancer with The Royal Ballet until her retirement in 2023. Early life and training Morera was born in Madrid. She started attending the Royal Academy of Dance's summer programme in Lon ...
- Spanish ballet dancer *
Kathryn Morgan Kathryn Elizabeth Morgan (born August 17, 1988) is an American ballet dancer. She joined New York City Ballet in 2006 and was promoted to the rank of soloist in 2009. Morgan left New York City Ballet in 2012 due to health complications related t ...
- American ballet dancer and YouTuber * Mary Ellen Moylan - American ballet dancer * Hope Muir - Canadian dancer, artistic director of
National Ballet of Canada The National Ballet of Canada is a Canadian ballet company that was founded in 1951 in Toronto, Ontario, with Celia Franca, the first artistic director. A company of 70 dancers with its own orchestra, the National Ballet has been led since 2022 ...
, former artistic director of
Charlotte Ballet Charlotte Ballet is the oldest professional ballet company in North Carolina. It was founded as North Carolina Dance Theatre in Winston-Salem by Robert Lindgren, who was then Dean of Dance at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, ...
*
Vadim Muntagirov Vadim Muntagirov is a Russian ballet dancer. He is currently a principal dancer at The Royal Ballet in London and previously a lead principal dancer at the English National Ballet. Early life Muntagirov, was born in Chelyabinsk, Russia. His pa ...
- Russian ballet dancer *
Gillian Murphy Gillian Murphy ( ; born April 11, 1979) is a British-born American ballet dancer who is a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre. Early life and education Raised in Florence, South Carolina, Murphy was a member of Columbia City Balle ...
- American ballet dancer *
Graeme Murphy Graeme Lloyd Murphy AO (born 2 November 1950) is an Australian dancer and choreographer. With his fellow dancer (and wife since 2004) Janet Vernon, he guided Sydney Dance Company to become one of Australia's most successful and best-known d ...
- Australian choreographer *
Arthur Murray Arthur Murray (born Moses Teichman; April 4, 1895 – March 3, 1991) was an American ballroom dancer and businessman, whose name is most often associated with the dance studio chain that bears his name. Early life and start in dance Arthur Mur ...
- dance instructor and businessman, known for the Arthur Murray Dance Studios franchise * Louis-Stanislas Montjoie, French ballet dancer


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Yasmine Naghdi Yasmine Naghdi (born 25 March 1992) is a British ballerina and a principal ballerina of The Royal Ballet, London. She joined The Royal Ballet's corps de ballet in April 2010 while she was a graduate student at The Royal Ballet School. She made ...
- British ballet dancer *
Gene Nelson Gene Nelson (born Leander Eugene Berg; March 24, 1920 – September 16, 1996) was an American actor, dancer, screenwriter, and director. Biography Nelson was born Eugene Leander Berg in Seattle, Washington. By 1924, he and his parents mov ...
- American film dancer, actor and television director *
Nadia Nerina Nadia Nerina (21 October 1927 – 6 October 2008) was a South African dancer who was "one of the most gifted, versatile, and inspiring ballerinas of The Royal Ballet" during the 1950s and 1960s. She was known "for her technical virtuosity, ...
- South African ballet dancer *
John Neumeier John Neumeier (born February 24, 1939) is an American ballet dancer, choreographer, and director. He was the director and principal choreographer of Hamburg Ballet from 1973 to 2024 and the artistic director of the ballet at the Hamburg State ...
- American choreographer, artistic director of
Hamburg Ballet The Hamburg Ballet is a ballet company based in Hamburg, Germany. Since 1973, it has been directed by the American dancer and choreographer John Neumeier. In addition there is a ballet school, , established in 1978. The performances of the Hamb ...
*
Nicholas Brothers The Nicholas Brothers were an entertainment act composed of brothers, Fayard (1914–2006) and Harold (1921–2000), who excelled in a variety of dance techniques, primarily between the 1930s and 1950s. Best known for their unique interpretati ...
- African American dancing brothers (Fayard and Harold) known for their acrobatic techniques * Kyra Nichols - American ballet dancer and teacher * Nikolina Nikoleski - Croatian teacher and choreographer of
Bharatnatyam ''Bharatanatyam'' is a Indian classical dance form that came from Tamil Nadu, India. It is a classical dance form recognized by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas of Hinduism and Jain ...
*
Vaslav Nijinsky Vaslav or Vatslav Nijinsky (12 March 1889/18908 April 1950) was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer of Polish ancestry. He is regarded as the greatest male dancer of the early 20th century. Nijinsky was celebrated for his virtuosity and f ...
- Russian ballet dancer and choreographer * Ena Noël - Australian children's author and ballet dancer *
Charlotta Norberg Maria Charlotta "Charlotte" Norberg also known as ''Charlotte Törner'' (27 December 1824 in Stockholm – 25 February 1892 in Stockholm) was a Swedish Ballerina and ballet teacher. She was a star of the Royal Swedish Ballet in the mid 19th-centur ...
- Swedish ballerina *
Siphesihle November Siphesihle November (born ) is a South African ballet dancer. He joined the National Ballet of Canada in 2017 and was promoted to principal dancer in 2021, at age 22. Early life and training November was born in Zolani, Western Cape. He is the y ...
- South African ballet dancer * Ivan Novikoff - ballet master, founder of Novikoff School of Russian-American Ballet *
Marianela Nuñez Marianela may refer to: People Given name * Marianela De La Hoz (born 1956), Mexican painter * Marianela González (born 1978), Venezuelan actress * Marianela Huen (born 1960), Venezuelan swimmer * Marianela Lacayo (born 1981), Nicaraguan model and ...
- Argentine-British ballet dancer *
Rudolf Nureyev Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev (17 March 19386 January 1993) was a Soviet-born ballet dancer and choreographer. Nureyev is widely regarded as the preeminent male ballet dancer of his generation as well as one of the greatest ballet dancers of all ...
- Russian ballet dancer


O

* Agnes Oaks - Estonian ballet dancer *
Donald O'Connor Donald David Dixon Ronald O'Connor (August 28, 1925 – September 27, 2003) was an American dancer, singer and actor. He came to fame in a series of films in which he co-starred, in succession, with Gloria Jean, Peggy Ryan, and Francis the Talki ...
- American dancer, singer and actor * Heather Ogden - Canadian ballet dancer * Fernanda Oliveira - Brazilian ballet dancer *
Jonathan Ollivier Jonathan Byrne Ollivier (26 April 1977 – 9 August 2015) was a British dancer. Biography Born in Northampton, he began his dance journey at The Fairweather School of Dancing before completing his study of both classical ballet and contemporary ...
- British dancer * Hannah O'Neill - New Zealand ballet dancer * Simona Orinska - only butoh artist in Latvia; multidisciplinary artist; contemporary dancer, poet, director and choreographer of many art projects; practitioner of dance therapy or dance movement therapy * Nancy Osbaldeston - English ballet dancer * Natalia Osipova - Russian ballet dancer * Clairemarie Osta - French ballet dancer * Anna Rose O'Sullivan - British ballet dancer * Sonia Osorio - Ballet de Colombia founder


P

* Stephen Page - Australian choreographer, artistic director of Bangarra Dance Theatre * Ludmila Pagliero - Argentine ballet dancer * Maria Palmer - Austrian-born American actress and dancer * Hermes Pan (choreographer), Hermes Pan - film choreographer, especially in collaboration with
Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz, May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, actor, singer, musician, choreographer, and presenter, whose career in stage, film, and television spanned 76 years. He is widely regarded as the "g ...
* Noelani Pantastico - American ballet dancer * Merle Park - Zimbabwean ballerina at the Royal Ballet * Sae Eun Park - South Korean ballet dancer * Georgina Parkinson - English ballet dancer and ballet mistress * Veronika Part - Russian ballet dancer * Anna Pavlova - legendary Russian prima ballerina, who brought ballet to the world * Georgina Pazcoguin - American ballet dancer * Justin Peck - American ballet dancer and choreographer * Tiler Peck - American ballet dancer * Rupert Pennefather - English ballet dancer * Tina Pereira - Trinidadian-Canadian ballet dancer * Rosie Perez - American (Afro-Puerto Rican descent) dancer, choreographer, actress and director * Jules Perrot - French ballet dancer and choreographer * Marius Petipa - choreographer who created the classical ballet * Vilhelm Pettersson - Swedish ballet dancer * Unity Phelan - American ballet dancer * Juanita Pitts - African-American tap dancer * Maya Plisetskaya - ''prima ballerina assoluta'' of the Bolshoi Ballet from 1960 to 1990 * David Poole (dancer), David Poole - South African ballet dancer and ballet master at Cape Town City Ballet * Eleanor Powell - American actress and dancer of the 1930s and 1940s, known for her exuberant solo tap dancing * Ida Praetorius - Danish ballet dancer * Angelin Preljocaj - French dancer and choreographer * Olga Preobrajenska - Russian dancer and teacher * Juliet Prowse - South African-American dancer, actress, and singer in many films, including ''G.I. Blues'', which also starred Elvis Presley * Laetitia Pujol - French ballet dancer * Brian Puspos - American hip-hop dancer, choreographer


R

* Sascha Radetsky - American ballet dancer and artistic director of American Ballet Theatre Studio Company * Samantha Raine - British ballet dancer and ballet mistress * Daniel Rajna - South African ballet dancer, currently a principal in the Cape Town City Ballet * Tina Ramirez - founder and artistic director of Ballet Hispanico * Teresa Reichlen - American ballet dancer * Alice Renavand - French ballet dancer * Dwight Rhoden - American choreographer, artistic director of Complexions Contemporary Ballet * Moon Ribas - choreographer with a cybernetic sensor attached to her body that allows her to feel earthquakes * María Noel Riccetto - Uruguayan ballet dancer * Jenifer Ringer - American ballet dancer and teacher * Jerome Robbins - American choreographer * Sonia Rodriguez - Canadian ballet dancer * Ginger Rogers - American film and stage dancer, singer and actress, most remembered as partner of
Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz, May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, actor, singer, musician, choreographer, and presenter, whose career in stage, film, and television spanned 76 years. He is widely regarded as the "g ...
* Tamara Rojo - Spanish ballet dancer and artistic director of English National Ballet * Pedro Romeiras - dancer gold medal winner 1982 II Prix Français de la Danse * Gunhild Rosén - Swedish ballerina, ballet master and choreographer * Danielle Rowe - Australian ballet dancer and choreographer * Calvin Royal III - American ballet dancer


S

* Stephanie Saland - American ballet dancer and teacher * Saleem (playwright), Saleem (Saleem Azzouqa) - gay Muslim playwright, actor, DJ, and dancer * Iana Salenko - Ukrainian-German ballet dancer * Marcelino Sambé - Portuguese ballet dancer * Oh Sehun - South Korean dancer and member of EXO * Ruth St. Denis - American dancer who tried to fuse modern dance with Egyptian and east Asian ideas; famously in collaboration with her partner Ted Shawn * Olga Sandberg (1844–1926) - Swedish ballerina * Margrethe Schall - ballerina * Silja Schandorff - Danish ballet dancer * Amanda Schull - American actress and ballet dancer * Amber Scott - Australian ballet dancer * Anders Selinder - ballet master and choreographer * Polina Semionova - Russian ballet dancer * Hee Seo - South Korean ballet dancer * Lynn Seymour - Canadian ballet dancer * Uday Shankar (Bengali: উদয় শংকর) (1900–1977) - pioneer of modern dance in India; world-renowned Indian dancer and choreographer; known for adapting Western theatrical techniques to traditional Indian classical dance, imbued with elements of Indian classical, folk, and tribal dance, thus laying the roots of modern Indian dance, which he popularized in India, Europe, and the United States in the 1920s and 1930s * Ted Shawn - ballet dancer often in collaboration with his influential partner Ruth St. Denis; they were the creators of Denishawn * Moira Shearer - Scottish ballet dancer and actress in ''The Red Shoes (1948 film), The Red Shoes'' * Fang-Yi Sheu - Taiwanese dancer * Ingrid Silva - Brazilian ballet dancer * Daniil Simkin - ballet dancer * Mary Skeaping - British ballerina * Charlotte Slottsberg - ballet dancer * Damian Smith (dancer), Damian Smith - Australian ballet dancer * Thiago Soares - Brazilian ballet dancer * Yuri Soloviev (dancer), Yuri Soloviev - soloist of the Kirov Theatre * Jennie Somogyi - American ballet dancer * Phyllis Spira-Boyd - South African ballet dancer * Helene Spilling - Norwegian dancer and TV personality * Abi Stafford - American ballet dancer * Jonathan Stafford - American ballet dancer and artistic director of
New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company's fir ...
* Taylor Stanley - American ballet dancer * Cory Stearns - American ballet dancer * Lisa Steier - Swedish ballerina * Dana Stephensen - Australian ballet dancer * Ethan Stiefel - American ballet dancer and choreographer * Beatriz Stix-Brunell - American ballet dancer * Madoka Sugai - Japanese ballet dancer * Laurretta Summerscales - British ballet dancer * Sofiane Sylve - French ballet dancer * Sofia Boutella - Algerian hip hop dancer * Shobana - Indian Bharatanatyam dancer


T

* Marie Taglioni - Italian ballet dancer * Akane Takada - Japanese ballet dancer * Erina Takahashi - Japanese ballet dancer * Janie Taylor - American ballet dancer * Paul Taylor (choreographer), Paul Taylor - American choreographer * Devon Teuscher - America ballet dancer * Twyla Tharp - American dancer and choreographer * Emmanuel Thibault (born 1974) - dancer, Paris Opera Ballet * Lisa Joann Thompson (born 1969) - Warrior Girls, Warrior Girl, Laker Girls, Laker Girl, Fly Girls (dance troupe), Fly Girl, and ''Motown Live'' dancer * Helgi Tómasson (dancer), Helgi Tómasson - Icelandic ballet dancer and choreographer, artistic director of San Francisco Ballet * Mark Tompkins (dancer), Mark Tompkins (born 1954) - American-born French artist, dancer and choreographer of contemporary dance * Tamara Toumanova (1919–1997) - one of Balanchine's three "Baby Ballerinas" * Elizabeth Triegaardt - South African ballerina and current director of Cape Town City Ballet * Anna Tsygankova - Russian ballet dancer * Cassandra Trenary - American ballet dancer * Roger Tully (1928–2020) - dancer, teacher


U

* Galina Ulanova (1910–1998) - Soviet prima ballerina assoluta * Eric Underwood (dancer), Eric Underwood - America British ballet dancer


V

* Agrippina Vaganova - founder of Vaganova method * Ninette de Valois, Dame Ninette de Valois - founder of the
Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded ...
of London * Rudi van Dantzig - Dutch choreographer * Hans van Manen - Dutch ballet dancer, choreographer and photographer * Sarah Van Patten - American ballet dancer * Jillian Vanstone - Canadian ballet dancer * Francesca Velicu - Romanian ballet dancer * Vera-Ellen - American Broadway and film dancer and actress * Gwen Verdon - Broadway dancer and actress * Ben Vereen - Tony Award-winning, Emmy Award-nominated actor, dancer and singer * Friedemann Vogel - German ballet dancer * Anastasia Volochkova - Russian prima ballerina


W

* Katita Waldo - Spanish ballet dancer and ballet master * Peter Walker (dancer), Peter Walker - American ballet dancer and choreographer * Cilli Wang - Austrian-born Dutch dancer, performer and theater maker * Vincent Warren - American-born Canadian dancer, teacher, dance historian and lecturer * Edward Watson (dancer), Edward Watson - British ballet dancer * Miranda Weese - American ballet dancer * Stanton Welch - Australian ballet dancer and choreographer, artistic director of Houston Ballet * Christopher Wheeldon - British choreographer * Wendy Whelan - American ballet dancer and associate artistic director of
New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company's fir ...
* James Whiteside (dancer), James Whiteside - American ballet dancer * Joy Womack - American ballet dancer * Peter Wright (dancer), Peter Wright - British ballet dancer and choreographer * Leni Wylliams - African-American dancer/choreographer/master-teacher


Y

* Nadia Yanowsky - Spanish ballet dancer * Yury Yanowsky - Spanish ballet dancer * Zenaida Yanowsky - Spanish ballet dancer * Lillian Yarbo, Lillian "Billie" Yarbo - Broadway dancer and comedienneJohnson, Lillian (May 14, 1938). ''The Baltimore Afro-American''. Page 10. Retrieved January 28, 2021. * Miyako Yoshida - Japanese ballet dancer * Nellie Yu Roung Ling - Chinese dancer


Z

* Vanessa Zahorian - American ballet dancer * Maddie Ziegler - American dancer


By occupation in ballet


Theatre directors

* Gerald Arpino *
Jean Dauberval Jean Dauberval, a.k.a. Jean D’Auberval, (born Jean Bercher in Montpellier, 19 August 1742 – Tours, 14 February 1806), was a French dancer and ballet master. He is most noted for creating the ballet, ''La fille mal gardée'', one of the m ...
* Sergei Diaghilev * Robert Joffrey * Louis XIV of France, Louis XIV * Jean-Baptiste Lully * Catherine de' Medici * Marie Rambert * Ninette de Valois * Robert de Warren


Choreographers

* Frederick Ashton, Sir Frederick Ashton *
George Balanchine George Balanchine (; Various sources: * * * * born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze;, Romanization of Georgian, : April 30, 1983) was a Georgian-American ballet choreographer, recognized as one of the most influential choreographers ...
* Pierre Beauchamp *
Erik Bruhn Erik Belton Evers Bruhn (3 October 1928 – 1 April 1986) was a Danish ballet dancer, choreographer, artistic director, actor, and author. Early life Erik Bruhn was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, the fourth child and first son of Ellen (née Eve ...
*
John Cranko John Cyril Cranko (15 August 1927 – 26 June 1973) was a South African ballet dancer and choreographer with the Royal Ballet and the Stuttgart Ballet. Life and career Early life Cranko was born to Herbert and Grace Cranko in Rustenburg in ...
* Peter Darrell * Michel Fokine, Mikhail Fokine * William Forsythe (dancer), William Forsythe *
Yury Grigorovich Yury Nikolayevich Grigorovich (; 2 January 1927 – 19 May 2025) was a Soviet and Russian ballet dancer, ballet master, choreographer, and pedagogue who dominated the Russian ballet for 30 years, especially as artistic director of the Bolshoi B ...
* Lev Ivanovich Ivanov *
Serge Lifar Serge Lifar (, ''Serhіy Mуkhailovуch Lуfar'') ( 15 December 1986) was a Ukrainian dancer, choreographer, and one of the greatest male ballet dancers of the 20th century. Lifar was also a choreographer, director, writer, theoretician abou ...
* Kenneth MacMillan * Léonide Massine * Sabrina Matthews * Bronislava Nijinska *
Vaslav Nijinsky Vaslav or Vatslav Nijinsky (12 March 1889/18908 April 1950) was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer of Polish ancestry. He is regarded as the greatest male dancer of the early 20th century. Nijinsky was celebrated for his virtuosity and f ...
* Jean-Georges Noverre *
Rudolf Nureyev Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev (17 March 19386 January 1993) was a Soviet-born ballet dancer and choreographer. Nureyev is widely regarded as the preeminent male ballet dancer of his generation as well as one of the greatest ballet dancers of all ...
* Jules Perrot * Marius Petipa * Roland Petit * Jerome Robbins * Filippo Taglioni * Antony Tudor * Robert de Warren


Dancers

*
Carlos Acosta Carlos Yunior Acosta Quesada (born 2 June 1973) is a Cuban-British ballet director and retired dancer who is director of the Birmingham Royal Ballet. He danced with many companies, including the English National Ballet, National Ballet o ...
*
Alicia Alonso Alicia Alonso (born Alicia Ernestina de la Caridad del Cobre Martínez del Hoyo; 21 December 1920 – 17 October 2019) was a Cuban prima ballerina assoluta and choreographer whose company became the Ballet Nacional de Cuba in 1955. She is bes ...
*
Ann-Margret Ann-Margret Olsson (born 28 April 1941), credited as Ann-Margret, is a Swedish-American actress and singer with a career spanning seven decades. Her many screen roles include '' Pocketful of Miracles'' (1961), ''State Fair'' (1962), '' Bye Bye B ...
*
Mikhail Baryshnikov Mikhail Nikolayevich Baryshnikov ( rus, Михаил Николаевич Барышников, p=mʲɪxɐˈil bɐ'rɨʂnʲɪkəf; ; born January 27, 1948) is a Latvian and American dancer, choreographer, and actor. He was the preeminent male ...
* Jérémie Bélingard * Maxim Beloserkovsky *
Ashley Bouder Ashley Bouder (; born December 10, 1983) is an American ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer at the New York City Ballet. She also founded and currently runs her own project, The Ashley Bouder Project. Early life Ashley Bouder was ...
*
Erik Bruhn Erik Belton Evers Bruhn (3 October 1928 – 1 April 1986) was a Danish ballet dancer, choreographer, artistic director, actor, and author. Early life Erik Bruhn was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, the fourth child and first son of Ellen (née Eve ...
* Fernando Bujones *
Darcey Bussell Dame Darcey Andrea Bussell (born Marnie Mercedes Darcey Pemberton Crittle; 27 April 1969) is a retired English ballet dancer, ballerina and a former judge on the BBC television dance contest ''Strictly Come Dancing''. Trained at the Arts Educ ...
* Jennifer Butler *
Leslie Caron Leslie Claire Margaret Caron (; born 1 July 1931) is a French and American actress and dancer. She is the recipient of a Golden Globe Award, two BAFTA Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards. Caron b ...
* Jose Manuel Carreno * Fanny Cerito * Vakhtang Chabukiani *
Cyd Charisse Cyd Charisse (born Tula Ellice Finklea; March 8, 1922 – June 17, 2008) was an American dancer and actress. After recovering from polio as a child and studying ballet, Charisse entered films in the 1940s. Her roles usually featured her abilit ...
*
Alina Cojocaru Alina Cojocaru (born 27 May 1981) is a Romanian ballet dancer. She was previously a principal dancer with The Royal Ballet and a lead principal with the English National Ballet. Early years Alina Cojocaru was born and raised in Bucharest, Ro ...
*
Angel Corella Angel Corella López is a Spanish former principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre (the only Spaniard to have achieved such a position in history) and guest artist with The Royal Ballet, Kirov Ballet, New York City Ballet, La Scala and ...
*
Anton Dolin Anton Dolin may refer to: * Anton Dolin (ballet dancer) (1904–1983), English ballet dancer and choreographer * Anton Dolin (film critic) Anton Vladimirovich Dolin (; ) is a Russian film critic, journalist, radio host, blogger and podcaster. ...
* Aurelie Dupont *
Irina Dvorovenko Irina Vladimirovna Dvorovenko (born August 28, 1973) is a retired ballet dancer and actress. She was a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre. Early life Dvorovenko was born in Kiev, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union (now Kyiv, Ukraine) an ...
* Fanny Elssler * Megan Fairchild *
Suzanne Farrell Suzanne Farrell (born August 16, 1945) is a former American ballerina and the founder of the Suzanne Farrell Ballet at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Farrell began her ballet training as a child in Cincinnati. In 1960, she received a ...
*
Alessandra Ferri Alessandra Ferri OMRI (born 6 May 1963) is an Italian prima ballerina. She danced with the Royal Ballet (1980–1984), American Ballet Theatre (1985–2007) and La Scala Theatre Ballet (1992–2007) and as an international guest artist, before ...
*
Margot Fonteyn Dame Margaret Evelyn de Arias Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, DBE ( Hookham; 18 May 191921 February 1991), known by the stage name Margot Fonteyn (), was an English ballerina. She spent her entire career as a dancer with th ...
*
Yekaterina Geltzer Yekaterina Vasilyevna Geltzer (November 2, 1876 – December 12, 1962) was a prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Ballet who danced in the theatre from 1898 to 1935. She was the daughter of the famous Russian dancer Vasily Geltzer. She worked with Marius ...
*
Adeline Genée Dame Adeline Genée Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, DBE (born Anina Kirstina Margarete Petra Jensen; 6 January 1878  – 23 April 1970) was a Danish-British ballet dancer. Early years Anina Kirstina Margarete Petra Jens ...
*
Pavel Gerdt Pavel Andreyevich Gerdt (), also known as Paul Gerdt (22 November 1844, near Saint Petersburg, Russia – 12 August 1917, in Vamaloki, Finland, Russian Republic), was the ''Premier Danseur Noble'' of the Mariinsky Ballet, Imperial Ballet, the Bol ...
*
Ailes Gilmour Ailes Gilmour (January 27, 1912 – April 16, 1993) was a Japanese Americans, Japanese American dancer who was one of the young pioneers of the American Modern dance, Modern Dance movement of the 1930s. She was one of the first members of Martha ...
* Jeffrey Golladay * Marcelo Gomes (dancer), Marcelo Gomes * Lucile Grahn * Carlotta Grisi * Fabio Grossi * Sylvie Guillem * Rex Harrington * Evelyn Hart * Melissa Hayden (dancer), Melissa Hayden * Paloma Herrera *
Laurent Hilaire Laurent Hilaire (; born 8 November 1962) is a French ballet dancer. Regarded as one of the greatest dancers to emerge from ballet over the past few decades, he was an '' étoile'' of the Paris Opera Ballet for 22 years. From 2011, he was the asso ...
* Greta Hodgkinson * Rowena Jackson *
Karen Kain Karen Alexandria Kain (born March 28, 1951) is a Canadian former ballet dancer and was the Artistic Director of the National Ballet of Canada from 2005 to 2021. Early training and childhood Kain's mother enrolled her daughter in ballet trainin ...
* Allegra Kent * Julie Kent * Darci Kistler * Johan Kobborg *
Maria Kochetkova Maria Olegovna Kochetkova (; born 1984) is a Russian ballet dancer. She was a principal dancer with the San Francisco Ballet between 2007 and 2018, and with the American Ballet Theatre between 2015 and 2017. After that, she became a freelance da ...
*
Maria Kowroski Maria Kowroski is an American ballet dancer. She was a principal dancer at the New York City Ballet. Early life Kowroski was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She started ballet at the age of five. In 1992, she entered the School of American Ballet ...
*
Mathilde Kschessinska Mathilde-Marie Feliksovna Kschessinska ( – 6 December 1971), also known as Princess Romanovskaya-Krasinskaya upon her marriage, was a Polish-Russian ballerina from the noble Krzesiński family. Her father, Felix Kschessinsky, her brother and ...
*
Pierina Legnani Pierina Legnani (30 September 1863 – 15 November 1930) was an Italian ballerina considered one of the greatest ballerinas of all time. Biography Legnani was born in 1863, in Milan and originally studied with famous ballet dancer Caterina B ...
*
Manuel Legris Manuel Legris (born 10 October 1964) is a French ballet dancer. He was a danseur étoile (principal dancer) with the Paris Opera Ballet for 23 years. On 1 September 2010, he became the director of the Vienna State Ballet. In December 2020, he ...
*
Lawrence Leritz Lawrence Leritz (born September 26, 1952) is an American actor, dancer, singer, producer, director, fitness expert and choreographer. Life and career Born in Alton, Illinois, Leritz made his stage debut in the children's chorus of the world stag ...
* Agnes Letestu * Emma Livry * Uliana Lopatkina * Joaquín De Luz * Vladimir Malakhov (dancer), Vladimir Malakhov * Alicia Markova * José Martínez * Patricia McBride *
Gillian Murphy Gillian Murphy ( ; born April 11, 1979) is a British-born American ballet dancer who is a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre. Early life and education Raised in Florence, South Carolina, Murphy was a member of Columbia City Balle ...
* Peter Naumann *
Nadia Nerina Nadia Nerina (21 October 1927 – 6 October 2008) was a South African dancer who was "one of the most gifted, versatile, and inspiring ballerinas of The Royal Ballet" during the 1950s and 1960s. She was known "for her technical virtuosity, ...
* Kyra Nichols *
Vaslav Nijinsky Vaslav or Vatslav Nijinsky (12 March 1889/18908 April 1950) was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer of Polish ancestry. He is regarded as the greatest male dancer of the early 20th century. Nijinsky was celebrated for his virtuosity and f ...
* Marianela Nunez *
Rudolf Nureyev Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev (17 March 19386 January 1993) was a Soviet-born ballet dancer and choreographer. Nureyev is widely regarded as the preeminent male ballet dancer of his generation as well as one of the greatest ballet dancers of all ...
* Anna Pavlova * Élisabeth Platel * Maya Plisetskaya * Olga Preobrajenska * Juliet Prowse * Laetitia Pujol * Rolando Sarabia * Moira Shearer * Yuri Soloviev (dancer), Yuri Soloviev * Phyllis Spira * Ethan Stiefel * Sofiane Sylve * Marie Taglioni * Maria Tallchief * Ludmilla Tchérina * Emmanuel Thibault * Galina Ulanova * Auguste Vestris * Gaetan Vestris * Diana Vishneva * Wendy Whelan * Miyako Yoshida * Svetlana Zakharova (dancer), Svetlana Zakharova


Teachers

* Thoinot Arbeau * Cyril Atanassoff *
George Balanchine George Balanchine (; Various sources: * * * * born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze;, Romanization of Georgian, : April 30, 1983) was a Georgian-American ballet choreographer, recognized as one of the most influential choreographers ...
* Claude Bessy (dancer), Claude Bessy * Pierre Beauchamp * Carlo Blasis *
August Bournonville August Bournonville (21 August 1805 – 30 November 1879) was a Danish ballet master and choreographer. He was the son of Antoine Bournonville, a dancer and choreographer trained under the French choreographer, Jean Georges Noverre, and the ne ...
* Enrico Cecchetti * Raoul-Auger Feuillet * Elisabeth Gerdt * Rosella Hightower * Stanley Holden * Victor Kanevsky (dancer), Victor Kanevsky *
Gelsey Kirkland Gelsey Kirkland (born December 29, 1952) is an American prima ballerina. She received early ballet training at the School of American Ballet. Kirkland joined the New York City Ballet in 1968 at age 15, at the invitation of George Balanchine. She ...
* Attilio Labis * Nicolai Legat *
Sulamith Messerer Sulamith Mikhailovna Messerer, OBE (, 27 August 1908, Moscow3 June 2004, London) was a Russian ballerina and choreographer who laid the foundations for the classical ballet in Japan. Biography Sulamith Messerer was born into the Lithuanian Jewis ...
* Peter Naumann * Anna Pavlova * Jules Perrot * Domenico da Piacenza * Olga Preobrajenska * Roma Pryma-Bohachevsky * Pierre Rameau * Jerome Robbins * Víctor Ullate * Agrippina Vaganova * Auguste Vestris * Vera Volkova * Stanley Williams (ballet), Stanley Williams


Designers and scenographers

* Léon Bakst * Alexandre Benois * Christian Bérard * Georges Braque * Marc Chagall * John Craxton * Salvador Dalí * André Derain * Barbara Karinska * Barry Kay * Pablo Picasso * Pavel Tchelitchev * Maurice Utrillo


See also

* List of dancers * List of female dancers


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dance Personalities Dance-related lists, Personalia Choreographers, Dance personalia Lists of people by occupation Lists of dancers