Vanessa Andrea Zahorian (born 1978/1979) is an American retired ballet dancer. She was a principal dancer at the

San Francisco Ballet San Francisco Ballet is the oldest ballet company in the United States, founded in 1933 as the San Francisco Opera Ballet under the leadership of ballet master Adolph Bolm. The company is currently based in the War Memorial Opera House, San Franc ...

. She is currently one of the artistic directors of Pennsylvania Ballet Academy.

Early life

Zahorian was born in

Allentown, Pennsylvania Allentown (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Allenschteddel'', ''Allenschtadt'', or ''Ellsdaun'') is a city in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. The city has a population of 125,845 as of the 2020 United ...

and is of Czech heritage. She started training at the Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet at age 5. When she was 11, she was offered a scholarship to Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet, but did not actually train there due to her young age and the political climate. At age 13, Zahorian started training at Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington D.C.. She was then sponsored by the Prince of Monaco to be an apprentice in

Kirov Ballet The Mariinsky Ballet (russian: Балет Мариинского театра) is the resident classical ballet company of the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in the 18th century and originally known as the Imperial Russ ...

in St. Petersburg.

Career

Zahorian joined the

as a member of the corps de ballet in 1997, was named soloist two years later and promoted to principal dancer in 2002. Her first principal role is 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 ...

''. She has since danced classical roles such as 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 ...

'', the title role in ''

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, ...

'', Kitri in '' Don Quixote'' and Tatiana in '' Onegin''. In 2017, Zahorian retired from the San Francisco Ballet after dancing ''Swan Lake'', along with her husband, Davit Karapetyan. The couple now direct the Pennsylvania Ballet Academy together. She is also a Balanchine

répétiteur A (from the French verb meaning 'to repeat, to go over, to learn, to rehearse') is an accompanist, tutor or coach of ballet dancers or opera singers. A feminine form, , also appears but is comparatively rare. Opera In opera, a is the person ...

Personal life

In 2010, Davit Karapetyan, a fellow San Francisco Ballet principal dancer proposed to Zahorian on stage after a performance of ''

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 ...

''. They married the following year. Zahorian graduated from the

St. Mary's College of California Saint Mary's College of California is a Private college, private Catholic Church, Catholic college in Moraga, California. Established in 1863, it is affiliated with the Catholic Church and administered by the De La Salle Brothers. The college of ...

Selected repertoire

Zahorian's repertoire with the San Francisco Ballet includes:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zahorian, Vanessa San Francisco Ballet principal dancers American ballerinas Living people 1970s births 21st-century American ballet dancers Sportspeople from Allentown, Pennsylvania American people of Czech descent Prima ballerinas Dancers from Pennsylvania Saint Mary's College of California alumni 21st-century American women