Ji-young Kim (; born July 26, 1978) is a South Korean

prima ballerina A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on yea ...

and 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 ...

with the

Korea National Ballet The Korea National Ballet is a South Korean ballet company. It was founded in 1962 in Seoul as the National Ballet Company. It was one of the affiliates of the National Theater of Korea until 1999, when it separated to independently reestablish its ...

(KNB) in

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

, South Korea.

Early years

Kim was born in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. She tried a number of hobbies while young, including

Taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. T ...

and

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

. She developed an interest in

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

and began taking ballet classes when she was ten years old.

Dancing career

In 1991, when Kim was thirteen years old, she began training professionally at the Yewon School, a specialist arts junior school in Seoul. During vacation she attended season sessions for ballet in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Later the same year, she had a chance to train with professors of the Vaganova Academy and Kim decided to study at the Vaganova. In 1992, Kim went to

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

and she passed the entrance exam for the school. Kim entered the

Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet The Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet is a school of classical ballet in St Petersburg, Russia. Established in 1738 during the reign of Empress Anna, the academy was known as the Imperial Ballet School until the Soviet era, when, after a brief hi ...

. In 1996, Kim performed in Vaganova's graduation performance. While she planned to join the company in Russia after her graduation, Kim withdrew her plans and returned to Seoul when her mother died suddenly from a heart attack during Kim's graduation performance. Five months later, Kim joined the

(KNB) as the youngest principal dancer. She made her stage debut, dancing the role of Esmeralda in ''

Notre Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris (; meaning "Our Lady of Paris"), referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the Seine River), in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. The cathedral, dedicated to the ...

''. Kim has won awards in top ballet competitions: in 1998 she won the bronze medal in the 6th

USA International Ballet Competition The USA International Ballet Competition, or USA IBC, is one of the world's top competitions for ballet. Located in Jackson, Mississippi, this competition is attended by dancers from all over the world to represent their country for bronze, silver, ...

Jackson Jackson may refer to: People and fictional characters * Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Q ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. In the same year, she won the First Prize in the 8th Paris International Dance Competition (Le Concours international de danse de Paris) in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, with her partner, Yong-geol Kim. In 1999, after winning the competition, the couple received the Order of Culture Merit: Hwagwan from The Republic of Korea; Kim was the youngest recipient. In 2001 she won the silver medal and best art prize in Kazan International Ballet Competition in

Tatarstan The Republic of Tatarstan (russian: Республика Татарстан, Respublika Tatarstan, p=rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə tətɐrˈstan; tt-Cyrl, Татарстан Республикасы), or simply Tatarstan (russian: Татарстан, tt ...

and Prima Ballerina Award from Ballet Association in

. In 1999, Kim resigned from the

and applied to and auditioned for several ballet companies in Europe. She joined

Dutch National Ballet The Dutch National Ballet (Dutch: Het Nationale Ballet) is the official and largest ballet company in the Netherlands. History The Dutch National Ballet was formed in 1961 when the Amsterdam Ballet and the Nederlands Ballet merged. The company h ...

in 2002 as a Grand sujet after an offer from the Artistic Director

Wayne Eagling Wayne Eagling (born 27 November 1950) is a Canadian ballet dancer, now retired. After more than twenty years as a popular member of The Royal Ballet in London, he became well known as an international choreographer and company director. Early li ...

of the

(Het National Ballet). Kim was promoted to soloist in 2005. In 2007, Kim was promoted to principal and awarded the Alexandra Radius Prize, an incentive prize for young and upcoming talent, from the ballet company. After an invitation from Balletto di

Teatro dell'Opera di Roma The Teatro dell'Opera di Roma (Rome Opera House) is an opera house in Rome, Italy. Originally opened in November 1880 as the 2,212 seat ''Costanzi Theatre'', it has undergone several changes of name as well modifications and improvements. The pre ...

(Rome Opera ballet),

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, Kim made her debut as Odette/Odile in ''

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 ...

''. In 2009, Kim rejoined

but remained in

as guest principal dancer. In 2010, Kim danced the première of ''

Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of Wester ...

'' as Kitri, with choreography by

Alexei Ratmansky Alexei Osipovich Ratmansky (russian: Алексей Осипович Ратманский, born August 27, 1968) is a Russian-American choreographer and former ballet dancer. From 2004 to 2008 he was the director of the Bolshoi Ballet. He left R ...

, with

. Her performance lead to another invitation from Balletto di

to dance as Kitri in ''

''. Subsequently, Kim made her debut with the

Bolshoi Ballet The Bolshoi Ballet is an internationally renowned classical ballet company based at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia. Founded in 1776, the Bolshoi is among the world's oldest ballet companies. In the early 20th century, it came to internatio ...

with KNB, dancing the roles of Juliet in ''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetim ...

'' and Raymonda in ''

Raymonda ''Raymonda'' (russian: Раймонда) is a ballet in three acts, four scenes with an apotheosis, choreographed by Marius Petipa to music by Alexander Glazunov, his Opus 57. It was first presented by the Imperial Ballet at the Imperial Mariinsky ...

'' for the 20th anniversary of Korea-Russia bilateral relations. In April 2011, Kim performed in the

Latin dance Latin dance is a general label, and a term in partner dance competition jargon. It refers to types of ballroom dance and folk dance that mainly originated in Latin America. The category of Latin dances in the international dancesport competi ...

project "Latin Innovation". In May, she performed in

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, making her debut as Cinderella in ''

Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...

'' with the

Teatro Massimo The Teatro Massimo Vittorio Emanuele is an opera house and opera company located on the Piazza Verdi in Palermo, Sicily. It was dedicated to King Victor Emanuel II. It is the biggest in Italy, and one of the largest of Europe (at the time of its i ...

Ballet company. In October 2011,

was invited as the opener for San Carlo Dance Festival. KNB performed the première of Prince Hodong and Kim danced the main role, Princess Nakrang, at

Teatro di San Carlo The Real Teatro di San Carlo ("Royal Theatre of Saint Charles"), as originally named by the Bourbon monarchy but today known simply as the Teatro (di) San Carlo, is an opera house in Naples, Italy, connected to the Royal Palace and adjacent t ...

(San Carlo Theater) in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

. In 2014, Kim performed in "Two in Two", a collaboration with her rival from the KNB, Kim Joo-won, which incorporates

tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries as the result of a combina ...

flamenco Flamenco (), in its strictest sense, is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura and ...

, ballet and

contemporary dance Contemporary dance is a genre of dance performance that developed during the mid-twentieth century and has since grown to become one of the dominant genres for formally trained dancers throughout the world, with particularly strong popularity in ...

. The two principal ballerinas had shared the role of princess Nakrang in the KNB show " Prince Hodong" in 2011 at the

, Italy. Following years of performances with the KNB, she announced her departure from it in summer 2019. Her last performance with the KNB was ''

Giselle ''Giselle'' (; ), originally titled ''Giselle, ou les Wilis'' (, ''Giselle, or The Wilis''), is a romantic ballet (" ballet-pantomime") in two acts with music by Adolphe Adam. Considered a masterwork in the classical ballet performance canon, ...

'' at the

Seoul Arts Center The Seoul Arts Center, also referred to as SAC, is an arts complex in the Seocho-gu district of Seoul, in South Korea. It consists of five main buildings: the Opera House, with three auditoriums; the Music Hall, with two concert halls; the Han ...

following which she became a professor of dance at the

Kyung Hee University Kyung Hee University (abbreviated to KHU) (Hangul: 경희대학교; Hanja: 慶熙大學校) is a private research university in South Korea with campuses in Seoul and Suwon. Founded in 1949, it is widely regarded as one of the best universities i ...

Style

Kim has been described a versatile ballerina, with brilliant academic technique and as deeply expressionistic with beautiful sharp lines. Her elegance has made a great impression in notable classics like ''

'', ''

'' and ''

La Bayadère ''La Bayadère'' ("the temple dancer") ( ru. «Баядерка», ''Bayaderka'') is a ballet, originally staged in four acts and seven tableaux by French choreographer Marius Petipa to the music of Ludwig Minkus. The ballet was staged especiall ...

'', and Kim is in perfect harmony with music: she fits with neoclassical and contemporary ballets, like Tchaikovsky's Pas de Deux. It has been noted that her performance as Kitri in ''

'' is one of her best roles because of her powerful technique and charismatic acting.

List of ballets performed / roles performed

''With the Korea National Ballet'' *Juliet in ''

'' *Giselle in ''

'' *Odette/Odile in ''

'' *Raymonda in ''

'' *Cinderella in ''

'' *Princess Aurora in '' The Sleeping Beauty'' *Nikiya in ''

'' *Kitri in ''

'' *Clara/Marie/the Sugar Plum Fairy in ''

The Nutcracker ''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaiko ...

'' *Phrigia in ''

Spartacus Spartacus ( el, Σπάρτακος '; la, Spartacus; c. 103–71 BC) was a Thracian gladiator who, along with Crixus, Gannicus, Castus, and Oenomaus, was one of the escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major slave uprising ...

'' *Paquita in ''

Paquita ''Paquita'' is a ballet in two acts and three scenes originally choreographed by Joseph Mazilier to music by Édouard Deldevez and Ludwig Minkus. Paul Foucher received royalties as librettist. History ''Paquita'' is the creation of French compo ...

'' *Medora in '' Le Corsaire'' *Esmeralda in ''Notre Dame de Paris'' ('' La Esmeralda'') *Carmen in ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the Carmen (novella), novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first perfo ...

'' *Princess Nakrang in '' Prince Hodong'' *Diana in ''Diana and Acteon Pas de Deux'' *Leading role in ''

The Dying Swan ''The Dying Swan'' (originally ''The Swan'') is a solo dance choreographed by Mikhail Fokine to Camille Saint-Saëns's ''Le Cygne'' from ''Le Carnaval des animaux'' as a '' pièce d'occasion'' for the ballerina Anna Pavlova, who performed it abo ...

'' *Leading role in ''Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux'' *Leading role in ''Grand Pas Classique'' ''With Dutch National Ballet (Het National Ballet)'' *Odette/Odile in ''

'' *Nikiya and Gamzatti in ''

'' *Princess Aurora in '' The Sleeping Beauty'' *Kitri in ''

'' *Clara/the Sugar Plum Fairy in ''

'' *Sylphide in ''

La Sylphide ''La Sylphide'' ( en, The Sylph; da, Sylfiden) is a romantic ballet in two acts. There were two versions of the ballet; the original choreographed by Filippo Taglioni in 1832, and a second version choreographed by August Bournonville in 1836. Bo ...

'' *Leading role in ''

Jewels A gemstone (also called a fine gem, jewel, precious stone, or semiprecious stone) is a piece of mineral crystal which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments. However, certain rocks (such as lapis lazuli, opal, a ...

'' *Leading role in ''

Serenade In music, a serenade (; also sometimes called a serenata, from the Italian) is a musical composition or performance delivered in honor of someone or something. Serenades are typically calm, light pieces of music. The term comes from the Italian w ...

'' *Leading role in ''

Pulcinella Pulcinella (; nap, Pulecenella) is a classical character that originated in of the 17th century and became a stock character in Neapolitan puppetry. Pulcinella's versatility in status and attitude has captivated audiences worldwide and kept t ...

'' *Leading role in '' Symphony in C'' *Leading role in ''Frank Bridge Variations'' *Leading role in the ''Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux'' *Leading role in ''Five tangos'' *Leading role in ''Black Cake'' *Leading role in ''Four Sections'' ''With the Balletto di Teatro dell'Opera di Roma (Rome Opera ballet)'' *Odette/Odile in ''

'' *Kitri in ''

'' ''With Bolshoi Ballet'' *Juliet in ''

'' *Raymonda in ''

'' ''With Teatro Massimo Ballet company'' *Cinderella in ''

Awards

*The Bronze Medal in the 6th USA International Ballet Competition in

(1998) *The First Prize in the 8th Paris International Ballet Competition (Le Concours international de danse de Paris) in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

(1998) *Order of Culture Merit: Hwagwan, The Republic of Korea (1999) *The Silver Medal and best art prize in Kazan International Ballet Competition in

(2001) *Prima Ballerina Award, Ballet Association in

(2001) *The Alexandra Radius Prize, Dutch National Ballet (2007)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Ji-Young 1978 births Living people Prima ballerinas South Korean ballerinas Academic staff of Kyung Hee University South Korean expatriates in the Netherlands South Korean expatriates in Russia South Korean expatriates in the United States National Dance Award winners Korea National Ballet 20th-century ballet dancers 21st-century ballet dancers