A principal dancer (often shortened to principal) is a

dancer Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoi ...

at the highest rank within a professional dance company, particularly a ballet company. A principal may be male or female. The position is similar to that of '' soloist''; however, principals regularly perform not only solos, but also

pas de deux In ballet, a pas de deux (French language, French, literally "step of two") is a dance duet in which two dancers, typically a male and a female, perform ballet steps together. The pas de deux is characteristic of classical ballet and can be fo ...

. Principal dancers can be hired into a dance company or can also be a company dancer that is a corps de ballet dancer that gets promoted from within the company. That process can take multiple performance seasons or even years to achieve based on skill level and company interest. It is a coveted position in the company and the most prominent position a dancer can receive. The term is used mostly in ballet but can be used in other forms as well, such as modern dance. They are usually the star of the ballet. The term ''senior principal dancer'' is sometimes used as well.

Synonyms and origin

The Italian derived term '' prima ballerina'' (female dancers) (''primo ballerino'' for male dancers) or the French derived term '' premier danseur'' (male dancers) have been used to denote similar levels of prominence in non Anglo-Saxon companies. In the Paris Opera Ballet, principal dancers receive the title of '' Danseur Étoile''.

Current principal dancers

Royal Ballet

Matthew Ball, Federico Bonelli, Alexander Campbell, Cesar Corrales, Lauren Cuthbertson, Francesca Hayward, Ryoichi Hirano, Fumi Kaneko, Sarah Lamb, Mayara Magri, Steven McRae, Laura Morera, Vadim Muntagirov, Yasmine Naghdi, Marianela Nuñez, Natalia Osipova, Anna Rose O’Sullivan, Marcelino Sambé, Akane Takada

Current principal dancers

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, it is recognized as one of the world's leading classical ballet companies. Through 2019, it had an annual ei ...

Primas

* Stella Abrera * Isabella Boylston * Misty Copeland * Sarah Lane * Gillian Murphy * Hee Seo * Devon Teuscher *

Christine Shevchenko Christine Shevchenko ( uk, Крістіна Шевченко, born 1988) is a Ukrainian-American ballet dancer. She currently performs as a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre. Early life Born in the Odessa, Ukraine, her father was ...

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 ...

Primos

* Herman Cornejo * David Hallberg * Daniil Simkin * Cory Stearns *

James B. Whiteside James B. Whiteside (born 1984), is an American ballet dancer, choreographer, model, drag queen, and recording artist. He is a former principal dancer with Boston Ballet and is currently a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre. Early li ...

* Aran Bell

Martha Graham Modern Dance Company

Primas

PeiJu Chien-Pott PeiJu Chien-Pott (; born 1984) is a Taiwanese dancer. She was a principal dancer for the Martha Graham Dance Company. Born in 1984, she was raised in Taoyuan. Chien-Pott started dancing at the age of five, and began training aged 10. She lat ...

* Xin Ying

Primos

* Lloyd Knight * Ben Schultz

References

Ballet occupations {{dance-stub