Sandra Conley (born 24 October 1943) is a former ballet dancer, a principal dancer with 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 ...

. Conley was born on 24 October 1943 in Hatfield, England. In 1962, Conley made her debut with the Royal Ballet's touring company, and in 1970 transferred to the Covent Garden company. She was promoted to principal dancer in 1980. Conley created the lead female role in

Kenneth MacMillan Sir Kenneth MacMillan (11 December 192929 October 1992) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer who was artistic director of the Royal Ballet in London between 1970 and 1977, and its principal choreographer from 1977 until his death. Ea ...

Valley of Shadows Valley of Shadows may refer to: * ''Valley of Shadows'' (ballet), a 1983 one-act ballet; * ''Valley of Shadows'' (2017 film), a 2017 Norwegian film; * ''Valley of Shadows'' (2024 film), a 2024 Spanish film. See also * Valley of the Shadows * ...

. She also created lead roles in

Antony Tudor Antony Tudor (born William Cook; 4 April 1908 – 19 April 1987) was an English ballet choreographer, teacher and dancer. He founded the London Ballet, and later the Philadelphia Ballet Guild in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., in the mid-195 ...

's ''Knight Errant'' (1968),

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 ...

's ''Creatures of Prometheus'' (1969), MacMillan's ''

Manon ''Manon'' () is an ''opéra comique'' in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Philippe Gille, based on the 1731 novel '' L'histoire du chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut'' by the Abbé Prévost. It was f ...

'' (1974), and

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 ...

's ''Gustav Mahler's Fourth Symphony'' (1977). Conley danced Empress Elisabeth in the 1983 New York City premiere of MacMillan's ''

Mayerling Mayerling is a small village (pop. 200) in Lower Austria belonging to the municipality of Alland in the district of Baden (district of Austria), Baden. It is situated on the Schwechat river, in the Vienna Woods, Wienerwald (''Vienna woods''), so ...

''. In her later career, she was a character artist with the Royal Ballet.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conley, Sandra 1943 births Principal dancers of The Royal Ballet Entertainers from Hatfield, Hertfordshire Living people English ballerinas 20th-century British ballet dancers