Sonia Rodriguez (born December 19, 1972) is a Canadian

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 ...

. She joined 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 ...

in 1990 and was promoted to principal dancer in 2000. In 2022, she retired as the longest serving dancer the company.

Biography

Born in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, she moved to

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

, Spain at age five with her family, where she received dance training with Pedro de la Cruz. She also studied at the Princess Grace Academy in

Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...

. In 1990, she returned to Canada to join the

, and was promoted to the rank of Principal Dancer in 2000. She has since danced roles such the title role in ''Cinderella'' and Aurora in ''The Sleeping Beauty''. In November 2019, she celebrated her 30th anniversary with the National Ballet after a performance of ''

Giselle ''Giselle'' ( , ), originally titled ''Giselle, ou les Wilis'' (; ''Giselle, or The Wilis''), is a romantic ballet () in two acts with music by Adolphe Adam. Considered a masterwork in the classical ballet performance canon, it was first perfor ...

''. The ''Los Angeles Magazine'' praised Rodriguez's performance as the titular role in ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'', for "perfectly capturing the mix of playful innocence and bewilderment as she encountered one strange scene after another during her journey." On Rodriguez's portrayal of the title role in ''Cinderella'', the ''Toronto'' ''Star'' noted she "retain a youthful romantic freshness but also finds opportunities to refine her interpretation." Outside of the National Ballet, Rodriguez has danced at numerous ballet galas. She also danced the role of Dulcinea in

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 ...

's ''

Don Quixote , the full title being ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'', is a Spanish novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts in 1605 and 1615, the novel is considered a founding work of Western literature and is of ...

,'' restaged by

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 ...

, in 2005. Rodriguez married Canadian figure skater,

Kurt Browning Kurt Browning (born June 18, 1966) is a Canadian figure skater, choreographer and commentator. He is the first skater to land a ratified quadruple jump in competition. He is a four-time World Champion and Canadian national champion. He comp ...

, on June 30, 1996; they have two children. The family home in the Forest Hill area of

suffered a fire on August 18, 2010. They are now divorced. She was added to

Canada's Walk of Fame Canada's Walk of Fame () in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, is a walk of fame that acknowledges the achievements and accomplishments of Canadians who have excelled in their respective fields. It is a series of maple leaf-like stars embedded in 13 de ...

in 2012. Rodriguez retired in March 2022.

Selected repertoire

References

External links

*
Sonia Rodriguez profile
seemagazine.com; accessed April 20, 2014. {{DEFAULTSORT:Rodriguez, Sonia 1972 births Living people Canadian ballerinas Canadian people of Spanish descent National Ballet of Canada principal dancers Entertainers from Madrid Dancers from Toronto Prima ballerinas 21st-century Canadian ballet dancers