Dance alum Vania Dodoo-Beals Assistant Choreographer at the National Ballet
Dance alumna Vania Dodoo-Beals (she/her) has had incredible success in the last year, leading up to and including her work with the National Ballet of Canada this past March.
Vania worked as the Assistant Choreographer to Siphesihle November’s new work On Solid Ground, which premiered alongside Elite Syncopations, and Skyward.
This trio ran from March 9th to 13th at the National Ballet of Canada. Elite Syncopations was created by Sir Kenneth MacMillan, and Skyward was created by another Dance alumna Alyssa Pires!
The world premiere of On Solid Ground marks newly promoted Principal Dancer Siphesihle November’s choreographic debut for the company’s main stage. “It was really an experience getting to work on a project like this so early in my career,” Vania reflects. “I’m honoured to be apart of Siphe's first piece and to debut as a choreographer with this work.” Vania took pleasure in “being able to work with such an established company, and working with dancers that we could challenge choreographically.”
PHOTO 2: Vania Dodoo-Beals in "Brubeck", choreographed by vicki st. Denys, presented at Ryerson Dances 2019.
Photo by Jeremy Mimnagh
Costume Design by Rachel Forbes, lighting Design by Simon Rossiter, projections by Samantha Skynner
Vania is a recent graduate, and working with the National Ballet has been a huge leap forward. “The [National Ballet of Canada] had so much going on, we had to make sure we were being as productive as we could be during our rehearsals.”
When asked if she had any advice for current students, Vania shared something she realized through this process. “Once you’ve entered the rooms you want to be in, you will quickly realize you are all artists sharing the same goal, to make your best work.”