Petra Conti
Petra Conti | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1988 (age 33–34) |
| Occupation | Ballet dancer |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Spouse(s) | |
| Current group | Los Angeles Ballet |
| Former groups | Mariinsky Ballet Bavarian State Ballet La Scala Theatre Ballet Boston Ballet |
| Website | www |
Petra Conti (born 1988) is an Italian ballet dancer. She is a principal dancer with Los Angeles Ballet. Conti was previously a principal dancer with the Boston Ballet. Before moving to the United States, Conti danced as a principal with La Scala Theatre Ballet and as a corps de ballet dancer with Bavarian State Ballet.
Early life[]
Petra Conti was born on April 30, 1988, in Anagni but she lived in Frosinone, Italy.[1] Her father is Italian and her mother is Polish. Her mother and sister trained at the National Academy of Ballet in Poland.[2] In 2006 she graduated with honors from the in Rome.[3]
Career[]
When Conti was seventeen years old, she was invited to dance as a guest star in the Arena di Verona Ballet's Cinderella. In 2008 she was a company member of the Bavarian State Ballet and a trainee at the Marinski ballet.[4] In 2009 she joined La Scala Theatre Ballet and was promoted to the rank of principal dancer in 2011.[5] In 2013 Conti was invited by Mikko Nissinen to join the Boston Ballet as a principal dancer.[3][6] She danced as a principal dancer with the company until 2017. Later that year she joined the Los Angeles Ballet as a resident principal guest dancer.[7]
From 2009 until 2011 Conti studied dramatic arts with at the in Milan.[3]
In 2017 and 2018, Conti danced the slave variation in the Arena di Verona's production of Aida.[3][8] She performed the variation in blackface and was criticized by African-American ballet dancer Sydney Magruder Washington, who took to social media to voice her objection to Conti's performance.[9][8] An article criticizing her for performing in blackface was published by BroadwayWorld in 2019.[8]
Documentary[]
She was the subject of a 2010 Sky Italia documentary titled Dancers of Tomorrow which focused on her performances in Giselle, Romeo and Juliet, and Don Quixote.[3]
Personal life[]
Conti is married to , former La Scala and Boston Ballet Principal Dancer and now a Principal Dancer with the Los Angeles Ballet.[10] She is also currently earning her bachelor's degree in Science of Leadership at Northeastern University.[3]
In 2016 Conti underwent surgery for kidney cancer.[2]
References[]
- ^ "Petra Conti, Los Angeles Ballet Principal". losangelesballet.org.
- ^ a b "International Guest Artist Petra Conti on How Surviving Kidney Cancer Refueled Her Love for Dance". Dance Magazine. 20 October 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f "Petra Conti - Bio". petraconti.
- ^ "Being groomed for stardom: Italian ballerina Petra Conti". 9 December 2011.
- ^ "Petra Conti vince l'edizione 2018 dei Glamour Talent Awards". 14 December 2018.
- ^ Palma, Briana (22 January 2014). "Boston Ballet's Petra Conti and Eris Nezha".
- ^ "South Shore Ballet Theatre - Petra conti". www.southshoreballettheatre.com.
- ^ a b c Porter II, Juan Michael (20 December 2019). "BWW Dance: Rebuke to Blackface, Orientalism, and Racist Equivocation in The Guardian". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
- ^ "Thank you, @theblackswandiaries for calling attention to... - efemmeranyc". PicDove.
- ^ "4. Los Angeles Ballet principal Petra Conti and Misiu". Pointe. 16 July 2018.
- Living people
- 1988 births
- 21st-century ballet dancers
- Italian ballerinas
- Italian people of Polish descent
- Boston Ballet principal dancers
- La Scala Theatre Ballet dancers
- Mariinsky Ballet dancers
- Northeastern University alumni
- People from Frosinone
- Naturalized citizens of the United States