Adji Cissoko is a German ballet dancer. She is currently a

principal dancer A principal dancer (often shortened to principal) is a dancer at the highest rank within a professional dance company, particularly a ballet company. A principal may be male or female. The position is similar to that of '' soloist''; however, p ...

at LINES Ballet.

Early life

Cissoko was born in Munich, Germany, to a German mother and

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 � ...

ese father. While growing up, the family visited Senegal regularly and blended both cultures at home. While growing up, she studied the

Vaganova method The Vaganova method is a ballet technique and training system devised by the Russian dancer and pedagogue Agrippina Vaganova (1879–1951). It was derived from the teachings of the ''Premier Maître de Ballet'' Marius Petipa, throughout the late ...

of ballet training. At age 18, she left Germany to study at

School of American Ballet The School of American Ballet (SAB) is the most renowned ballet school in the United States. School of American Ballet is the associate school of the New York City Ballet, a ballet company based at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New ...

and

American Ballet Theatre American Ballet Theatre (ABT) is a classical ballet company based in New York City. Founded in 1939 by Lucia Chase and Richard Pleasant, it is recognized as one of the world's leading classical ballet companies. Through 2019, it had an annual ei ...

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School The Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at American Ballet Theatre (ABT/JKO School) is the associate school of American Ballet Theatre located at 890 Broadway, within the Flatiron District of Manhattan, New York City. The school comprises a children ...

, both in New York.

Career

After graduating, Cissoko joined the

corps de ballet In ballet, the ''corps de ballet'' (; French for "body of the ballet") is the group of dancers who are not principal dancers or soloists. They are a permanent part of the ballet company and often work as a backdrop for the principal dancers. ...

at the National Ballet of Canada. The artistic director,

Karen Kain Karen Alexandria Kain (born March 28, 1951) is a Canadian former ballet dancer, and was the artistic director of the National Ballet of Canada from 2005 - 2021. Early training and childhood Kain's mother enrolled her daughter in ballet training ...

, had seen her dance at the 2009

Prix de Lausanne The Prix de Lausanne is an international dance competition held annually in Lausanne, Switzerland. The competition is for young dancers seeking to pursue a professional career in classical ballet, and many former prize winners of the competition a ...

. During her first year with the ballet, she was photographed for the cover of the August/September 2011 issue of

Pointe Magazine ''Pointe'' is an international magazine aimed at ballet dancers and students. Releasing four times a year, ''Pointe'' covers international news on company debuts, competition results, and rising stars. Pointe also contains reviews, company profil ...

. After three seasons with the National Ballet of Canada, Cissoko felt she wasn't a good fit for the company because of her height, and Kain suggested she try out for LINES Ballet, a more contemporary company with taller dancers. Cissoko was accepted at LINES, although she did return to National Ballet of Canada in summer 2018 to dance ''

Swan Lake ''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoye ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, link=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failur ...

''. Cissoko has danced with LINES since 2014, where founder

Alonzo King Alonzo King, born in Georgia to civil-rights activists Slater King and Valencia King Nelson, is an American dancer and choreographer based in San Francisco. King grew up in Georgia and California, and, as an adult, decided his contribution w ...

encouraged her to be more

improvisational Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...

. She has also performed at New Chamber Ballet and Monterrey International Ballet Gala. In 2018, she created the role of Furiosa in ''Fury'', a ballet based on '' Mad Max: Fury Road'' choreographed by Danielle Rowe and produced by Kate Duhamel.

Personal life

Cissoko also started working as a

life coach Coaching is a form of development in which an experienced person, called a ''coach'', supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance. The learner is sometimes called a ''coa ...

during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, which she spent in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. She is fluent in German, French, and English, conversational in Spanish, and knows basic Senegalese.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cissoko, Adji Living people 21st-century ballet dancers School of American Ballet alumni Prima ballerinas German ballerinas People from Munich Year of birth missing (living people)