Whitney Jensen (born May 4, 1992)
is an American ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer with the
Norwegian National Ballet
The Norwegian National Opera and Ballet ( no, Den Norske Opera & Ballett, links=no) is a Norwegian opera company and ballet company. The first fully professional company each for opera and ballet in Norway and the only such professional organisati ...
in Oslo, and was previously a principal with the
Boston Ballet
The Boston Ballet is an American professional classical ballet company based in Boston, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1963 by E. Virginia Williams and Sydney Leonard, and was the first professional repertory ballet company in New England. I ...
.
Early life and education
Jensen was born in
Sandy, Utah
Sandy is a city in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, located in Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. The population of Sandy was 87,461 at the 2010 census, making it the sixth-largest city in Utah. The population is currently estimated ...
, and raised in
Park City
Park City may refer to: a city in Utah.
Places
* National Park City, London, England, UK; see parks and open spaces in London
in the United States
* Park City, Illinois
* Park City, Kansas
* Park City, Kentucky
* Park City, Montana
* Park City, ...
.
Her mother was a professional dancer and later a teacher, and her two sisters are
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
dancers. She started dancing at age 6, in ballet, jazz, tap and hip hop, and focused on ballet two years later. At age 11, when competing at the
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 ...
, she met
Valentina Kozlova Valentina Kozlova (born August 26, 1957) is a Soviet-born Russian American ballerina and founder of Valentina Kozlova International Ballet Competition. In 1979, while on tour as a young principal dancer with the Bolshoi Ballet, Kozlova defected to t ...
, a former
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 ...
principal, then began travelling between Utah and New York to train with Kozlova. At age 13, Jensen moved to New York, to train with Kozlova privately while completing her school work online.
Career
At ages 11 and 12, she performed in the Radio City Christmas Spectacular
The ''Christmas Spectacular Starring the Radio City Rockettes'' is an annual musical holiday stage show presented at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The 90-minute show features more than 140 performers and an original musical score, an ...
as Clara.
In 2008, Jensen won the special distinction prize at the junior division of the Varna International Ballet Competition
The Varna International Ballet Competition is a biennial ballet competition held in Varna, Bulgaria. The competition was founded in 1964 and subsequently held in 1965 and 1966, and then every two years starting in 1968. Many dancers have gained the ...
in Bulgaria. She was the first American to win this award. She then danced with the Hungarian National Ballet
The Hungarian National Ballet ( hu, Magyar Nemzeti Balett) is a classical ballet dance company based in Budapest, Hungary. The ballet company is attached to the Hungarian State Opera House, which is also home to the Hungarian State Opera company a ...
as 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 ...
''.[ In 2009, she was listed as one of ]Dance Magazine's "25 to Watch" Dance Magazine's "25 to Watch" is an annual list published by Dance Magazine of leading young dancers and choreographers, as well as new dance companies and trends in dance. The list is printed in the January issue of the magazine each year.
...
.[ That year, at age 17, she joined the ]Boston Ballet
The Boston Ballet is an American professional classical ballet company based in Boston, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1963 by E. Virginia Williams and Sydney Leonard, and was the first professional repertory ballet company in New England. I ...
. She was promoted to second soloist months later, then to soloist in 2011. In 2014, at age 22, she was promoted to principal dancer, making her one of the youngest principals in the company's history.[ She was cast in ]contemporary
Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from approximately 1945 to the present. Contemporary history is either a subset of the late modern period, or it is o ...
works more often.[
In 2015, Jensen left the ]Boston Ballet
The Boston Ballet is an American professional classical ballet company based in Boston, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1963 by E. Virginia Williams and Sydney Leonard, and was the first professional repertory ballet company in New England. I ...
. She later said of her departure, "I loved the company and the people there. I felt it was time for me to take a breather and reflect on what I wanted and how I can progress in my own way—and not measure roles or promotions as success." She said she took a six month hiatus, but continued to practice during that time. She then contacted Norwegian National Ballet
The Norwegian National Opera and Ballet ( no, Den Norske Opera & Ballett, links=no) is a Norwegian opera company and ballet company. The first fully professional company each for opera and ballet in Norway and the only such professional organisati ...
's director Ingrid Lorentzen
Ingrid Trøite Lorentzen (born 9 March 1972) is a Norwegian ballet dancer. Since August 2012, she has been artistic director of the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet, Norwegian National Ballet.
Early life
Born in Trondheim, she grew up in the ...
, who offered her a contract, and relocated to Oslo in February 2016. She is currently a principal at NNB, where her repertoire includes full-length classics and works by 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 ...
, Jerome Robbins
Jerome Robbins (born Jerome Wilson Rabinowitz; October 11, 1918 – July 29, 1998) was an American dancer, choreographer, film director, theatre director and producer who worked in classical ballet, on stage, film, and television.
Among his nu ...
, Jiří Kylián
Jiří Kylián (born 21 March 1947) is a Czech former dancer and contemporary dance choreographer.
Life
Jiří Kylián was born in 1947 in Prague, Czechoslovakia, to his father Václav who was a banker and to his mother Markéta, who was as a ...
, William Forsythe and Alexander Ekman
Karl Wilhelm Alexander Ekman (born 1984) is a Swedish ballet dancer and choreographer. His choreographies have been performed by Les Ballets de Monte Carlo, the Boston Ballet, the Semperoper Ballett, the Nederlands Dans Theater, the Norwegian ...
.
In 2020, Jensen danced ''The Swan
A swan is a bird of the genus ''Cygnus'' (true swans) or ''Coscoroba'' (coscoroba swans).
Swan, swans, or The Swan may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Film and television
* ''The Swan'' (1925 film), a 1925 silent film
* ''The Swa ...
'' in Misty Copeland
Misty Danielle Copeland (born September 10, 1982) is an American ballet dancer for American Ballet Theatre (ABT), one of the three leading classical ballet companies in the United States. On June 30, 2015, Copeland became the first African Ameri ...
's fundraiser, Swans for Relief, a response to the impact of the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic on the dance community, with funds going to participating dancers' companies and other related relief funds.
Personal life
Jensen studied at the Northeastern University
Northeastern University (NU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston. Established in 1898, the university offers undergraduate and graduate programs on its main campus as well as satellite campuses in ...
through a special program for Boston Ballet dancers.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jensen, Whitney
1992 births
Living people
American ballerinas
People from Park City, Utah
Boston Ballet principal dancers
American expatriates in Norway
Dancers from Utah
21st-century American ballet dancers
21st-century American women