27.02.2023
Soloist Madeleine Graham leaves the RNZB for new opportunities in Europe
After ten years with the Royal New Zealand Ballet, Soloist Madeleine Graham will say haere rā to the national ballet company.
After ten years with the Royal New Zealand Ballet, Soloist Madeleine Graham will say haere rā to the national ballet company, and to audiences throughout Aotearoa next month, when she leaves Wellington to join her life partner for new adventures in Amsterdam.
Soloist Madeleine Graham in L’Arlésienne, 2017. Photo credit: Stephen A’Court.
‘I’ve experienced tremendous growth both professionally and personally during my ten years with the Royal New Zealand Ballet’ says Melbourne-born Madeleine, who joined the company in the spring of 2012, fresh from completing her classical training at The Australian Ballet School. ‘Performing a diverse repertoire internationally and throughout New Zealand with the company has been both memorable and a great privilege. I look forward to the future and opportunities to dance on some different stages.’
Madeleine has made her mark in both classical and contemporary repertoire with the RNZB, and names her special highlights as creating the role of Juliet in Francesco Ventriglia’s Romeo & Juliet in 2017, the role of Vivette in Roland Petit’s L’Arlésienne, which she performed the same year and Andrea Schermoly’s suffrage-themed Stand to Reason (2018). With the RNZB she performed in China, the USA, the UK, Italy and Hong Kong, and in 2018 she became the first ballet dancer to travel to and perform in Antarctica, collaborating with choreographer Corey Baker on his short film Antarctica: The First Dance.
Acting Artistic Director David McAllister says: ‘It was such a pleasure over the last 10 years to see Madeleine transform from talented student at The Australian Ballet School to assured artist of the Royal New Zealand Ballet. Her performances as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet remain vivid in my memory as do her recent performances in Tutus on Tour. We will miss her luminous artistry and vibrant technique on stage but also wish her every success venturing forth with her partner, carrying all the love of her friends and colleagues here at the RNZB.’
Madeleine would like to thank her colleagues at the RNZB and especially the artistic and health teams who have supported her onstage and off. She would also like to extend a special thank you to Ryman Healthcare, who have sponsored her since 2015: visiting Ryman villages and meeting residents and staff around New Zealand has been a pleasure and a privilege.
Madeleine’s last performances with the RNZB will be in Tutus on Tour in Blenheim (4 March), Nelson (7 – 9 March) and Ashburton (11 March).
Former Soloist Madeleine Graham with former Principal Joseph Skelton in Romeo and Juliet, 2017. Photo credit: Stephen A’Court.