Marcelino Sambé (born 29 April 1994) is a Portuguese

ballet dancer 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 ...

. He is 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 Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded in ...

in London.

Early life

Sambé was born on

International Dance Day the performing arts of UNESCO. The event takes place every year on 29 April, which is the anniversary of the birth of Jean-Georges Noverre (1727–1810), who is considered to be the "father" or creator of modern ballet (ie. classical or romanti ...

1994 to a Guinean father and Portuguese mother in an immigrant community at the outskirt of

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

. His father worked in construction. Sambé attended African dance classes at a local community centre despite being the only boy in the troupe. When he was 8, the community centre's psychologist encouraged Sambé to audition for National Conservatory of Lisbon to train ballet, even though he did not know what ballet was. He ended up improvising an African dance routine for the panel, and was accepted to the Conservatory. Soon, he started training in 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 ...

. Sambé's father died shortly afterwards, as Sambé's mother could not take care of both Sambé and his sister, so he was fostered by a family whose daughter was also training at the Conservatory, and later became a dancer at the

National Ballet of Portugal Companhia Nacional de Bailado (CNB), the National Ballet Company of Portugal, was established in Lisbon in 1977 and the Teatro Nacional de São Carlos was its home for the first two decades of its existence. CNB is the only state company in Portug ...

. After winning a scholarship at the

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 ...

, he moved

The Royal Ballet School The Royal Ballet School is a British school of classical ballet training founded in 1926 by the Anglo-Irish ballerina and choreographer Ninette de Valois. The school's aim is to train and educate outstanding classical ballet dancers, especially ...

in London at age 16.

Career

Sambé joined

in 2012, a year ahead of his scheduled graduation. He was made First Artist in 2014, Soloist in 2015 and First Soloist in 2017. In 2019, he was promoted to Principal Dancer, making him the second black male dancer, after

Carlos Acosta Carlos Yunior Acosta Quesada (born 2 June 1973) is a Cuban-British ballet director and retired dancer who is director of the Birmingham Royal Ballet. He danced with many companies including the English National Ballet, National Ballet of Cu ...

, to reach this rank in the company. His promotion came after his debuts as Basilio in ''

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 ...

'', for which he was coached by Acosta, and Romeo 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 ...

''. Sambé' has also originated roles in works by choreographers such as

Crystal Pite Crystal Pite (born December 15, 1970) is a Canadian choreographer and dancer. She began her professional dance career in 1988 at Ballet BC, and in 1996 she joined Ballett Frankfurt under the tutelage of William Forsythe. After leaving Ballett ...

Hofesh Shechter Hofesh Shechter (born 3 May 1975) is an Israeli choreographer, dancer and composer based in London. He is best known for being the founder and artistic director of the Hofesh Shechter Company. Shechter was nominated for the Tony Award for Best ...

and

Cathy Marston Cathy Marston (born 1975) is a British choreographer and artistic director. She was the director of Bern Ballett from 2007–2013. After her tenure, she has choreographed for companies worldwide, including The Royal Ballet, San Francisco Ballet ...

. His frequent partners on stage include

Francesca Hayward Francesca Hayward (born 4 July 1992) is a Kenyan-born English ballet dancer and actress. She is a principal dancer in the Royal Ballet at Covent Garden in London. In 2019, she starred as Victoria the White Cat in the musical film ''Cats'', an ad ...

Yasmine Naghdi Yasmine Naghdi (born March 25, 1992) is a British ballerina and principal dancer of The Royal Ballet in London. She joined The Royal Ballet in April 2010. In June 2017, she was promoted to the rank of principal ballerina. Early life Naghdi ...

and

Anna Rose O'Sullivan Anna Rose O'Sullivan (born 16 April 1994) is an English ballet dancer and is a principal dancer at the Royal Ballet. Her promotion to principal dancer took effect in September 2021. Early life O'Sullivan was born in Harrow, London and raised in ...

. As a choreographer himself, Sambé has choreographed for The Royal Ballet School's annual matinee and The Royal Ballet’s Draft Works. In 2020, he was featured in the BBC documentary, ''Men at the Barre''. That year, his debut as Prince Siegfried 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 ...

'' was delayed due to the

coronavirus 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 identified ...

. Sambé performed at the Coronation Concert in 2023, to mark the

coronation of Charles III and Camilla The coronation of Charles III and his wife, Camilla, as King and Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms will take place on Saturday, 6 May 2023, at Westminster Abbey. King Charles III acceded to the throne on 8 Septembe ...

Selected repertoire

Sambé's repertoire with The Royal Ballet includes:

Awards

Awards: *2008: Moscow International Ballet Competition - silver prize *2009:

Youth America Grand Prix Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) is the world's largest non-profit international student ballet competition and scholarship program, open to dance students of all nationalities, 9–19 years old. YAGP annually conducts regional auditions in the Unit ...

- first prize *2010:

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, ...

- gold medal and special award *2011: Ursula Morton Choreographic Awards - second prize *2012: Youth Dance England - UK’s emerging choreographers *2017:

Critics' Circle National Dance Awards The National Dance Awards are presented annually in the United Kingdom by The Critics' Circle, and are awarded to recognise excellence in professional dance. They are widely regarded as the most prestigious award presented for dance in the UK, a ...

- Outstanding Male Classical Performance *2019: Outstanding Male Classical Performance - Best Male Dancer *2023: Outstanding Male Classical Performance

Personal life

Sambé is openly gay. He and his partner live in

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire. The term ''nort ...

. Sambé took up photography when he was recovering from an injury, and has an Instagram account dedicated to his photographs of other Royal Ballet dancers.

References

External links

Royal Ballet biographySambé in ''Flight Pattern''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sambé, Marcelino 1994 births Portuguese male ballet dancers People educated at the Royal Ballet School Living people People from Lisbon Principal dancers of The Royal Ballet Portuguese people of Guinean descent Portuguese expatriates in England 21st-century ballet dancers Gay dancers Portuguese gay men Portuguese LGBT entertainers