Sarah-Gabrielle_Ryan

Sarah-Gabrielle Ryan

Sarah-Gabrielle Ryan

Mexican-American ballet dancer

Sarah-Gabrielle Ryan is a Mexican-American[1] ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer with Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle.[2]

Quick Facts Born, Nationality ...

Early life and training

Ryan was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to a Mexican mother and an Irish-American father. She began dance classes at a local studio before one of her teachers noticed her natural facility for classical ballet and recommended The Rock School for Dance Education for more specialized and technical training.

Ryan also attended classes at Metropolitan Ballet Academy, and eventually enrolled at the newly reopened School of Pennsylvania Ballet, from where she graduated.[3]

She attended various summer courses at institutions such as the Bolshoi Ballet Academy, Ellison Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, School of American Ballet, the School of Pennsylvania Ballet, and Pacific Northwest Ballet School.[4]

Career

At 16, Ryan received her first professional contract with the company formerly known as Pennsylvania Ballet (now Philadelphia Ballet). Two years later, in 2016, she joined Pacific Northwest Ballet as an apprentice, and was promoted to corps de ballet in 2017.[5]

During her first year in the corps de ballet, she was chosen to replace principal ballerina Noelani Pantastico (who was injured at the time) in Crystal Pite's Plot Point.[6] Her successful performance led to a string of featured roles, including Maria in Jerome Robbin's West Side Story and the Sugar Plum Fairy in George Balanchine's The Nutcracker.[7]

In 2018 she was featured in Dance Magazine's "On the Rise" and was the March/April (digital) cover of Pointe Magazine in 2021.[8][9]

During the pandemic lockdown, when live performances were canceled, Ryan was featured in Sylvia Pas de deux and the Rubies pas de deux from Balanchine's Jewels for PNB's digital season.[10][11]

She was promoted to Soloist at Pacific Northwest Ballet in November 2021,[12] and to Principal on November 3 2023.[13]

Most recently, Ryan danced leading roles during PNB's June 2022 tour in New York City. She was featured in the playbill and poster at the David H. Koch Theater.

Outside of PNB, Ryan has performed as a guest artist at Shut Up & Dance in collaboration with MANNA, Chop Shop Contemporary Dance Festival, and the Seattle International Dance Festival. In 2021, she was a guest artist for Matthew Neenan's residency at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts,[14] South Dakota Ballet,[15] and Ballet Sun Valley dance festival in Idaho.

In addition to her work as a dancer, Ryan choreographed Before You Know It for PNB's Next Step program.[16]

Selected Repertoire

Created roles[17]

  • Donald Byrd: Love and Loss
  • Kyle Davis: A Dark and Lonely Space
  • Amanda Morgan: This Space is Left Intentionally Blank
  • Matthew Neenan: Bacchus
  • Noelani Pantastico: Picnic
  • Miles Pertl: Wash of Gray
  • Eva Stone: F O I L
  • Ezra Thompson: The Perpetual State

References

  1. [1]
    Sillman, Marcie. "The Radiant Sarah-Gabrielle Ryan: Why She's One to Watch at Pacific Northwest Ballet". Pointe Magazine.
  2. [2]
    Laubacher, Kyra. "Roster Round-Up: Catch Up on Dancer Promotions". Pointe Magazine.
  3. [3]
    Loftus, John. "Budding Ballerina". Northeast Times.
  4. [4]
    "Promotions". Official Blog of PNB. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
  5. [5]
    Sillman, Marcie. "The Radiant Sarah-Gabrielle Ryan Why She's One to Watch at Pacific Northwest Ballet". Pointe Magazine.
  6. [6]
    Sillman, Marcie. "From Sugar Plum Fairy to Tackling Work by Pite and Forsythe, This PNB Corps Dancer Can Do it All". Dance Magazine.
  7. [7]
    Cassandra Lea-Saxton. "Sarah-Gabrielle Ryan | Soloist". Retrieved 2021-11-13.
  8. [8]
    "From Sugar Plum Fairy to Tackling Work by Pite and Forsythe, This PNB Corps Dancer Can Do It All". Dance Magazine. 2018-08-14. Retrieved 2021-11-13.
  9. [9]
    "The Radiant Sarah-Gabrielle Ryan: Why She's One to Watch at Pacific Northwest Ballet". Pointe Magazine. 2021-02-28. Retrieved 2021-11-13.
  10. [10]
    "Ballet Sun Valley 2020 Program". Ballet Sun Valley.
  11. [11]
    Lee, Cherilyn J. "Pacific Northwest Ballet Review: An Exciting Return to the Stage". Ballet Herald.
  12. [12]
    "Dancer Promotions at Pacific Northwest Ballet". PNB Official Blog.
  13. [13]
    "Dancer Promotions! Clara Ruf Maldonado, Kuu Sakuragi, and Sarah-Gabrielle Ryan". PNB Official Blog. November 3, 2023. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  14. [14]
    Whittington, Lewis J. "Matthew Neenan's Re-Entering Premieres". The Dance Journal.
  15. [15]
    "South Dakota Ballet presents Only Human". Washington Pavilion.
  16. [16]
    "Next Step: Outside/In 2020". YouTube.
  17. [17]
    "Sarah-Gabrielle Ryan: Soloist". Pacific Northwest Ballet.
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