Artistic Director Tamara Rojo
For an art form dominated by women, there sure are very few female in top positions in ballet. Actually, Richmond Ballet is hosting “The Glass Slipper Ceiling” focusing on the rarity of female artistic directors just this morning. Panelists include Ballet Memphis’ Dorothy Gunther Pugh, Cincinnati Ballet’s Victoria Morgan, Smuin Ballet’s Celia Fushille and Richmond’s own Stoner Winslett along with special guest Suzanne Farrell. Soon, it looks like we might have one more high-powered woman joining their ranks: The Royal Ballet star Tamara Rojo.
Earlier this week, London’s The Independent published a feature by Alice Jones about Rojo. In it, Rojo says she’s been working towards becoming an artistic director for some time, shadowing National Ballet of Canada’s Karen Kain and earning a Master’s degree in the performing arts. From what she says, Rojo seems like she would make a fantastic AD: “Ballet has to be not just good, it has to be excellent… When you have…such a big part of your budget guaranteed from the government, I think you do have more of a responsibility to be outrageous and to take risks.” Rojo admits she’s already eyeing a specific company to take over, but doesn’t divulge which one. With a healthy mix of idealism and exacting standards, once she’s ready to move on from performing, Rojo might just be the breath of fresh air the ballet world needs.