Myriam Ould-Braham (born January 1982) is a French

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 ...

. After joining the

Paris Opera Ballet The Paris Opera Ballet () is a French ballet company that is an integral part of the Paris Opera. It is the oldest national ballet company, and many European and international ballet companies can trace their origins to it. It is still regarded ...

in 1999, she became a ''première danseuse'' (principal) in 2005 and was elevated to the rank of ''étoile'' (star) in 2012.

Early life

Born in Paris, Ould-Braham's father is Algerian, her mother French. Taking an early interest in gymnastics in

Algiers Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques ...

, she later turned to dance, finding it was more fun to move about with music. In 1993 she began ballet lessons with Yvonne Goubé at the Salle Pleyel before attending the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

in 1995. The following year, she was admitted to the

Paris Opera Ballet School The Paris Opera Ballet () is a French ballet company that is an integral part of the Paris Opera. It is the oldest national ballet company, and many European and international ballet companies can trace their origins to it. It is still regarded a ...

where she was awarded the Chausson d'Or prize. In 1998, with the school troupe, she danced ''

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 ...

'' in

David Lichine David Lichine (russian: Дэвид (Давид) Лишин; 25 October 1910 – 26 June 1972) was a Russian-American ballet dancer and choreographer. He had an international career as a performer, ballet master, and choreographer, staging works fo ...

's ''Le Bal des cadets'' and in 1999, she performed Gourouli in Albert Aveline's '' Les Deux Pigeons''.

Career

Ould-Braham joined the Paris Opera Ballet in 2001. She was soon selected to take part in

Roland Petit Roland Petit (13 January 192410 July 2011) was a French ballet company director, choreographer and dancer. He trained at the Paris Opera Ballet school, and became well known for his creative ballets. Life and work The son of shoe designer Ros ...

's ''Les Forains'', to dance Aurore in '' The Sleeping Beauty'' and the Pas de Deux in the Coralli/Perrot version of ''Giselle''. After being promoted to première danseuse in 2005, her repertoire included Lise in

Frederick Ashton Sir Frederick William Mallandaine Ashton (17 September 190418 August 1988) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer. He also worked as a director and choreographer in opera, film and revue. Determined to be a dancer despite the oppositi ...

's ''

La Fille mal gardée LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...

'', Calliope in

George Balanchine George Balanchine (; Various sources: * * * * born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze; ka, გიორგი მელიტონის ძე ბალანჩივაძე; January 22, 1904 (O. S. January 9) – April 30, 1983) was ...

's ''

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...

'', and Naïla in Jean-Guillaume Bart's '' La Source''. She has also enjoyed the role of Manon in

Kenneth MacMillan Sir Kenneth MacMillan (11 December 192929 October 1992) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer who was artistic director of the Royal Ballet in London between 1970 and 1977, and its principal choreographer from 1977 until his death. Ea ...

's ''

L'histoire de Manon ''L'histoire de Manon'', generally referred to as ''Manon'', is a ballet choreographed by Kenneth MacMillan to music by Jules Massenet and based on the 1731 novel '' Manon Lescaut'' by Abbé Prévost. The ballet was first performed by The Royal ...

'' as well as the Neo-Classical ballets of William Forsythe and

Wayne McGregor Wayne McGregor, CBE (born 12 March 1970) is a multi award-winning British choreographer and director. He is the Artistic Director of Studio Wayne McGregor and Resident Choreographer of The Royal Ballet. McGregor was appointed Commander of the ...

. At the curtain call on 18 June 2012, following her performance as Lise in ''La Fille mal gardée'', Myriam Ould-Braham was elevated to the rank of étoile. Ould-Braham has received three major awards: Cercle Carpeaux Prize (2002), Leonide Massine Positano Dance Award (2005), and AROP Prize (2005).

References

External links

Overview from Danse en Seine (in French) of Myriam Ould-Braham's career with photographs and videos
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ould-Braham, Myriam 1982 births Prima ballerinas French ballerinas Living people Paris Opera Ballet étoiles Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres