Bernice Coppieters (born 18 November 1970) is a Belgian retired

ballet dancer A ballet dancer is a person who practices the Art (skill), art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet. They rely on years of extensive training and proper technique to become a part of a professional ballet company. B ...

and

ballet master A ballet master (also balletmaster, ballet mistress, ''premier maître de ballet'' or ''premier maître de ballet en chef'') is an employee of a ballet company who is responsible for the level of competence of the dancers in their company. In mo ...

. She danced as an ''étoile'' at

Les Ballets de Monte Carlo Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo (The Monte Carlo Ballet) is a classical ballet company established in 1985 by Caroline, Princess of Hanover in accordance with the wishes of her mother, Princess Grace of Monaco. It is the national company of the Princ ...

and is a long time collaborator of

Jean-Christophe Maillot Jean-Christophe Maillot (born 1960) is a Monaco-based, French-born dancer and choreographer. He has been the choreographer-director of Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo since 1993. Early life and education Maillot was born in Tours. He studied at the ...

. She is now the principal ballet master at the company and has staged Maillot's productions worldwide.

Biography

Born in

Dendermonde Dendermonde (; , ) is a city in the Flemish Region, Flemish Provinces of Belgium, province of East Flanders in Belgium. The Municipalities of Belgium, municipality comprises the city of Dendermonde and the towns of Appels, Baasrode, Grembergen, M ...

, Belgium, Coppieters started training at the Antwerp Institute of Ballet in 1980. She join

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 ...

, where she became a soloist. She joined the Ballets de Monte-Carlo in 1991, and began a creative relationship with

, which lasted almost 30 years. She was named ''étoile'' of the company by

Caroline, Princess of Hanover Princess Caroline of Monaco (born 23 January 1957) is Princess of Hanover by marriage to Prince Ernst August. As the eldest child of Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, and Grace Kelly, she is the elder sister of Albert II, Prince of Monaco, and ...

in 1995. Coppieters became the principal ballet master in 2015. She has staged Maillot's productions in Sweden, Germany, Austria, South Korea, U.S., Czech Republic and Belgium.

Created roles by Maillot

Coppieters originated more than 40 roles in Maillot's productions, including: *Juliet in ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

'' *The Fairy Godmother and Wicked Stepmother in ''

Cinderella "Cinderella", or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a Folklore, folk tale with thousands of variants that are told throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsin Press, 1988. The protagonist is a you ...

'' *Meier in the Drosselmeier couple in '' Casse-Noisette Circus'' *Beauty in '' La Belle'' *Titania in '' Le Songe'' *Death in Faust *Princess Sheherazade in '' Sheherazade'' *Her Majesty the Night in ''

LAC Lac may refer to: Places Africa * Lac Region, a district in Chad * Lac Prefecture, a district in Chad America * Rivière du Lac, a tributary of the Montmorency River, in Capitale-Nationale, Quebec, Canada Europe * Laç, a city in Albania * Lac ...

Awards and honours

*1988:

Prix de Lausanne The Prix de Lausanne () is an international dance competition held annually in Lausanne, Switzerland. The competition is for young dancers seeking to pursue a professional career in classical ballet, and many former prize winners of the competition ...

*1995: Appointed Danseuse Etoile of the Ballets de Monte-Carlo by H.R.H. the Princess of Hanover *2002: Officier de l'Ordre du Mérite Culturel of the Principality of Monaco *2003: Positano "Léonide Massine" Award *2005: Étoile of the year award by Premio Danza at Danza *2011:

Prix Benois de la Danse The Benois de la Danse is a ballet competition held annually in Moscow. Founded by the International Dance Association in 1991, it takes place each year on or around April 29 and it's judged by a jury. The members of this jury change every year and ...

for the title role in '' Sheherazade'' * 2015: Officer of the

Order of Cultural Merit The Order of Cultural Merit is an honour or decoration awarded by a country. It may refer to: *Order of Cultural Merit (Korea) *Order of Cultural Merit (Monaco) *Order of Cultural Merit (Romania) *Order of Cultural Merit (Tunisia) *Ordem do Mérito ...

.Ordonnance Souveraine n° 5.560 du 18 novembre 2015

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coppieters, Bernice 1970 births Prima ballerinas Belgian ballerinas Belgian expatriates in Monaco Prix Benois de la Danse winners Living people People from Dendermonde People from Monte Carlo Prix de Lausanne winners 20th-century ballet dancers 21st-century ballet dancers