Igone de Jongh (born 9 September 1979) is a Dutch

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 ye ...

and a former

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

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 ...

. She is featured in the

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...

for Anouk's song ''Birds'', the official Netherlands entry to the

Eurovision Song Contest 2013 The Eurovision Song Contest 2013 was the 58th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Malmö, Sweden, following the country's victory at the with the song "Euphoria" by Loreen. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EB ...

Biography

Born in Haarlem in the Netherlands, De Jongh became interested in ballet when she was four years old after seeing a performance of '' The Sleeping Beauty'' on television. She trained at the National Ballet Academy of Amsterdam and later at 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 ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. In 1996, she was appointed as élève at the National Ballet in Amsterdam. In 2003, she was promoted to First Soloist. In 2014, the Dutch National Ballet reported that De Jongh was the only dancer currently working with the company who had gone through all the ranks, from aspirant (1996) to principal (2003). De Jongh has danced many leading roles at the National Ballet including those in classical ballets such as '' Romeo and Juliet'', '' Swan Lake'', '' Giselle'', '' The Sleeping Beauty'' and ''

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 Tchai ...

''. She has also starred in ''

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 ...

'', in Bournonville's ''

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. ...

'' and in Balanchine's '' Agon'', ''

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 ''

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 ...

'' as well as in ballets choreographed by William Forsythe, Ted Brandsen, David Dawson and

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 ...

. She also performed in the

for Anouk's song ''Birds'', the official Netherlands entry for the

. Among De Jongh's awards are the Arnold Haskell Award (1996) for promising young dancer, the Encouragement Award Dancers Fund Foundation (2002) and the Alexandra Radius Prize (2002). In 2007 and in 2010, she was nominated for the

Prix Benois de la Danse The Benois de la Danse is a ballet competition held annually in Moscow. Founded by the International Dance Association in 1991, it takes place each year on or around April 29 and it's judged by a jury. The members of this jury change every year and ...

De Jongh danced the role of the ballet teacher in the 2021 ballet film, Coppelia, a modern adaptation of the E.T.A. Hoffmann story combining live dance with animation. Her partner was former soloist Mathieu Gremillet with whom she has a son. She is said to be the muse of

Hans van Manen Hans Arthur Gerard van Manen (; born 11 July 1932) is a Dutch ballet dancer, choreographer and photographer. He studied under Sonia Gaskell and Françoise Adret. Van Manen wrote many ballets. He worked for the Dutch National Ballet from 1973 ...

Since the end of 2016 she is in a relationship with Dutch actor Thijs Römer, they married in October 2019. In January 2023 she announced her divorce from actor Römer.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jongh, Igone de 1979 births People from Haarlem Dutch ballerinas Dutch National Ballet principal dancers Living people 20th-century Dutch ballet dancers 21st-century ballet dancers