Darren Anderson (dancer)
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Darren John Anderson (born in
Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...
,
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
) is an internationally acclaimed ballet dancer. He is also known for his work in contemporary and classical choreography.


Life and career

Darren Anderson was born to Gerald Hubert Anderson, a Master Warrant Officer from the Royal Canadian Armed Forces, and Jean Elizabeth Anderson, a gemologist, in Edmonton, Alberta. While growing up, Anderson describes his early exposure as being to hockey, which his family encouraged him to pursue, to follow in the steps of his uncle
Norm Ullman Norman Victor Alexander Ullman (born December 26, 1935) is a Canadian former ice hockey forward (ice hockey), forward. He previously played for the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1955 to 1975, an ...
, a hockey star who had been inducted into the
Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame () is a museum and hall of fame located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League (NHL) records, memorabilia and National Hockey Le ...
. But Anderson was not interested in hockey; instead he began studying ballet at age 18 at the Alberta Ballet School, and he described himself as immediately "hooked". At age 19, Anderson was accepted into the
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 ...
and the
Royal Winnipeg Ballet The Royal Winnipeg Ballet is Canada's oldest ballet company and the longest continuously operating ballet company in North America. History It was founded in 1939 as the "Winnipeg Ballet Club" by Gweneth Lloyd and Betty Farrally (who also fou ...
summer programs and was given a scholarship to attend the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, where he won a spot in the school's professional division. He completed the program in 1998 and danced with the company as an Aspirant for one season while continuing his training through private coaching with Dr. Arnold Spohr. In 1999 he joined the
Cincinnati Ballet The Cincinnati Ballet is a professional ballet company founded as Cincinnati Civic Ballet in 1958, based in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. After being registered as a company, it had its first performance in 1964. Founding Organizing founde ...
, where he remained for three seasons. He also studied at the
American Ballet Theatre American Ballet Theatre (ABT) is a classical ballet company based in New York City. Founded in 1939 by Lucia Chase and Richard Pleasant. Through 2019, it had an annual eight-week season at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center) in the spr ...
's Summer Intensive in New York City. Anderson returned to Canada to join the Royal Winnipeg Ballet in 2002, where he was Second Soloist with the company, and performed such roles as Uncle Drosselmeyer in "The Nutcracker", the cat in "Puss in Boots", and the dog in "Val Caniparoli's Cinderella". In the latter production, he played Carabosse, the wicked witch role that required him to dress in drag. He had a dominant stage presence infused with his theatrical and comedic abilities, which commanded attention. Another significant part for him was as Cinderella's dog in "A Cinderella Story", which gave him the reputation of being adept at portraying characters such as mystical and animal roles. It also identified his talent for injecting his roles with a compelling edge that, beyond just the dancing itself, delighted audiences. "It was Darren Anderson, '' en travestie'' as the wicked Carabosse, who almost stole the show." Anderson was also known for his physicality, which proved pivotal in his roles, and his finesse in transitioning from classical works to contemporary works within a single season. "An exception to the company's general constraint in attack was Darren Anderson's ''Puss in Boots''. Though also coulourlessly costumed, he danced with abandon within his character." He gained wide respect for community outreach to increase interest in ballet across generations and to expose children to dance at an early age. Anderson's advanced ballet training, which was exclusively classical, included the Russian
Vaganova method The Vaganova method is a ballet technique and training system devised by the Russian dancer and pedagogue Agrippina Vaganova (1879–1951). It was derived from the teachings of the ''Premier Maître de Ballet'' Marius Petipa, throughout the lat ...
, the English
Royal Academy of Dance The Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) is a UK-based examination board specialising in dance education and training, with an emphasis on classical ballet. The RAD was founded in London, England in 1920 as the Association of Teachers of Operatic Danci ...
, and the George
Balanchine method Balanchine technique or Balanchine method is the ballet performance style invented by dancer, choreographer, and teacher George Balanchine (1904–1983), and a trademark of the George Balanchine Foundation. It is used widely today in many of Balan ...
. He danced with Banff Festival Ballet (Summer company),
Royal Winnipeg Ballet The Royal Winnipeg Ballet is Canada's oldest ballet company and the longest continuously operating ballet company in North America. History It was founded in 1939 as the "Winnipeg Ballet Club" by Gweneth Lloyd and Betty Farrally (who also fou ...
,
Cincinnati Ballet The Cincinnati Ballet is a professional ballet company founded as Cincinnati Civic Ballet in 1958, based in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. After being registered as a company, it had its first performance in 1964. Founding Organizing founde ...
, Smuin Ballet, and danced in guest performances in Canada, the United States, Japan, and Europe. His principal dance teachers were: Arnold Spohr, Ross Brierton, Arlene Minkhorst, and Willie Burman. Over his career, Anderson danced in a wide variety of works by such noted choreographers as
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 ...
,
Agnes De Mille Agnes George de Mille (September 18, 1905 – October 7, 1993) was an American dancer and choreographer. Early years Agnes de Mille was born in New York City into a well-connected family of theater professionals. Her father William C. deMill ...
,
Rudi van Dantzig Rudi van Dantzig (4 August 1933 – 19 January 2012) was a Dutch choreographer, company director, and writer. He was a pivotal figure in the rise to world renown of Dutch ballet in the latter half of the twentieth century. He was co-director and ...
,
Jiri Kylian Jiri () is a municipality in Dolakha District in the Bagmati Province of central Nepal. At the time of the 2011 Nepal census it had a population of 13,638 people. Jiri, which lies about 190 kilometers from Kathmandu, is the main gateway to the ...
,
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 ...
,
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 ...
,
Val Caniparoli Val Caniparoli is an American ballet dancer and international choreographer. His work includes more than 100 productions for ballet, opera, and theater for over 50 companies, and his career as a choreographer progressed globally even as he continu ...
,
Michael Smuin Michael Smuin (October 13, 1938 – April 23, 2007) was an American ballet dancer, choreographer and theatre director. He was co-founder and director of his own dance company, the Smuin Ballet in San Francisco. Biography Born in Missoula, Montan ...
,
Stanton Welch Stanton De Burgh Welch (born 1969) is an Australian dancer and choreographer. He is the artistic director of the Houston Ballet. Early life Welch was born in Melbourne to Marilyn Jones and Garth Welch, two prominent Australian dancers. Care ...
and
Itzik Galili Itzik Galili (; born 1961 in Tel Aviv) is an Israeli choreographer. Career After having been a member of the Batsheva Dance Company and Bat-Dor Dance Company in his country, he moved to the Netherlands in 1991, where he founded his own compan ...
. He was most identified in the following roles: "Dog" in Val Caniparoli's "A Cinderella Story", "Carabosse" in The Sleeping Beauty, soloist in Stanton Welch's "Fingerprints", Petite Mort (Kylian), "Sugar Plum Cavalier", Uncle Drosselmeyer in "The Nutcracker", "Snow Cavalier", "Spanish", and "Rat King", in "The Nutcracker", "Romeo and Juliet" balcony scene, "Dr. Van Helsing" in Dracula, "Le Jazz Hot" pas de deux, "SYNC" (Nils Christie). In August, 2008, Anderson joined Smuin Ballet, a company founded by Emmy Award- and Tony Award-winning choreographer
Michael Smuin Michael Smuin (October 13, 1938 – April 23, 2007) was an American ballet dancer, choreographer and theatre director. He was co-founder and director of his own dance company, the Smuin Ballet in San Francisco. Biography Born in Missoula, Montan ...
, who had previously served as the co-director of the
San Francisco Ballet San Francisco Ballet is the oldest ballet company in the United States, founded in 1933 as the San Francisco Opera Ballet under the leadership of ballet master Adolph Bolm. The company is currently based in the War Memorial Opera House, San Fra ...
. In Anderson's five-year dance tenure with the company, he performed solos in such works as Petite Mort, "French Twist", "Dancin' with Gershwin", "Dances With Songs", and "Fly Me to the Moon". He performed his final program with Smuin in May 2012, which included Val Caniparoli's "Swipe," Ma Cong's "Through" and Michael Smuin's "Symphony of Psalms". In 2012, Anderson began work on new choreography for Smuin Ballet. His choreography, entitled "All I want for Christmas is You," for the Smuin annual holiday show, received accolades from the media. His choreographed works, "At Last" and "Kiss-Kiss" were highlighted in Smuin Ballet's annual gala evenings in 2015 and 2016, respectively. He was appointed to the newly created Community Relations Manager position for the company, where one of his focuses is community outreach and public relations. Anderson received accolades for his establishment of an LGBT Night event at Smuin Ballet. In 2018, Darren Anderson launched a K-12 education initiative called "Dancentive" aimed at incorporating dance as part fitness and health for children.


Personal

Darren Anderson lives in San Francisco, California.


Choreography

* "The Culprit" (April 2009) * "At Last" (Smuin Ballet, April 2012) * "Shiver" (World Premiere: Smuin Ballet, April 2012) * "All I Want for Christmas" (Smuin Ballet, November 2012) * "Four Smuin Ballet Promotional Video Ads" (October 2013) * "Kiss-Kiss" (Smuin Ballet Workshop, February 2014) * "Syzygy" (Smuin Ballet Workshop, March 2015) * "At Last" (Smuin Ballet Gala, 2015) * "Kiss-Kiss" (Smuin Ballet Gala, 2016) * "Lightness" (Lighthouse Family of Schools Gala, 2017)


Film and television

* Falcon Beach (Television Series) * Nude Caboose - 2006 - Actor (Director Guy Maddin) * Ballet Girls documentary with Royal Winnipeg Ballet (2006) * Capote (starring Philip Seymour Hoffman) - 2005 - Film - Featured Extra * Around Sanford - 2004 - Lead Actor (Independent film) * The Winnipeg Season - 2004 - Television movie, special skills extra (dance) * Shall We Dance? (Richard Gere, Jennifer Lopez)- 2004 - special skills extra actor (dance) * Cincinnati POPS Thanksgiving Special (1999)


Honors and awards

* Bay Area Choreographer of the Month (June, 2012) * Dr. Arnold Spohr Award of Excellence (1997-1998) * Dr. Francis G. Winspear Award for Excellence (1997-1998) * Alberta Foundation for the Arts Grant (1997) * Alberta Foundation for the Arts Grant (1998) * American Ballet Theatre Scholarship (Summer Intensive 2000) * Manitoba Arts Council Travel Grant for Professional Development Travel in Japan (2007)


References


External links


Smuin Ballet

Val Caniparoli

Royal Winnipeg Ballet

National Ballet of Canada

Cincinnati Ballet
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Darren Canadian male ballet dancers 1976 births Living people Canadian emigrants to the United States American Ballet Theatre dancers American male film actors American male television actors Ballet choreographers Male actors from Edmonton Royal Winnipeg Ballet