Benedicte Bemet

Last updated

Benedicte Bemet is an Australian ballet dancer. She is a principal dancer for The Australian Ballet.

Contents

Benedicte Bemet
Born
Mackay, Queensland
Education Australian Ballet School
OccupationDancer
Known forPrincipal dancer with The Australian Ballet
Awards Telstra Ballet Dancer Award

Early life and education

Bemet was born in Mackay, Queensland, [1] in about 1994, the daughter of Steven and Andrée Bemet, who are both school teachers. [2] She has one brother. [2] She grew up on the Gold Coast, Queensland, where she learned ballet at the Ransley Ballet Centre, [1] and then lived in Hong Kong with her family. [2] There, she trained at the Jean M. Wong School of Ballet. [1] She then returned to Queensland to live with her grandparents in order to apply to the Australian Ballet School, which she entered in 2008, aged 14. [2] [3]

Career

Bemet began dancing with the Australian Ballet in 2012. [3] She was promoted from coryphée to soloist in 2016, [2] [4] after having been chosen in 2015 by the then artistic director of the Australian Ballet David McAllister to take on the role of Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty . [2] A dance reviewer commented that, "in her 40 years of "ballet-watching", [she] ha[d] not witnessed a debut like it ... it was extraordinary." [2]

In 2017, Bemet suffered a severe tendon injury which caused her to take a year off from ballet, [5] [6] during which she explored psychology and read books about resilience and wellness. [7] By September 2018, she was dancing as a soloist again, in the role of Flavia in Spartacus . [8] A reviewer commented, "Benedicte Bemet paints a fragile yet fiercely passionate persona as Flavia, and her commitment to emotive storytelling through dance is stunning to watch." [8] She was promoted to principal dancer in December 2019. [1] In 2023, The Australian Ballet, with Bemet, performed at Covent Garden for the first time in 35 years. A reviewer wrote of her performance there in George Balanchine's Jewels:

"Bemet’s musicality was notable, allowing her to shade between her movements and to let the choreography breathe; she made the overlong central pas de deux into a vision of classical purity, while the third and fourth sections saw her unleash impressive but never over-showy virtuosity. This was a notable assumption of a very difficult role; while Caley is a familiar dancer one was delighted to see again, Bemet is an unfamiliar artist one longs to see again." [9]

Selected roles

Bemet's repertoire with The Australian Ballet includes:

YearBalletChoreographer(s)Role
2024 Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland Christopher Wheeldon Alice [5] [10]
2023 Swan Lake Anne Woolliams Odette/Odile [11] [12] [6]
2023Jewels George Balanchine Diamonds - Lead Couple [9]
2023 Don Quixote Rudolf Nureyev (after Marius Petipa)Kitri [13]
2023 The Dream Frederick Ashton Titania [14]
2022 Romeo and Juliet John Cranko Juliet [15]
2022 Harlequinade Marius Petipa and Alexei Ratmansky Columbine [15]
2022KunstkamerSol León, Paul Lightfoot, Crystal Pite and Marco Goecke Performer [16]
2022Anna KareninaYuri PossokhovKitty [17]
2020CapriccioFrançois-Eloi LavignacSolo dancer [18] [19]
2019 Giselle Maina Gielgud Giselle [20]
2018 Spartacus Aram Khachaturian and Lucas JerviesFlavia [8]
2016 Coppélia George Ogilvie and Peggy van Praagh Swanilda [21]
2016 In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated William Forsythe Performer [4]
2016 Grand pas classique Viktor GvoskyPerformer [4]
2016 DGV©: Danse à grande vitesse Christopher Wheeldon"Second Region" Pas de deux [4]
2016 Symphony in C George Balanchine Third Movement Principal [4]
2015 The Sleeping Beauty David McAllister Aurora [2] [5]
2015The Sleeping BeautyDavid McAllisterPrincess Florine [4]
2015 Giselle Maina Gielgud Peasant Pas de deux [21]
2014 The Nutcracker Peter Wright Clara [4]
2014 Suite en Blanc Serge Lifar Sérénade Variation [4]

Awards

Personal life

Bemet loves baking and cooking anything involving chocolate [4] and has an aversion for tight fitting clothes. [22] In order to relieve stress before shows, Bemet likes to sew pointe shoes. [23]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Darcey Bussell</span> British ballerina and television personality (born 1969)

Dame Darcey Andrea Bussell, is a retired English ballerina and a former judge on the BBC television dance contest Strictly Come Dancing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maria Tallchief</span> American ballerina (1925–2013)

Maria Tallchief, born Elizabeth Marie Tall Chief, was an American ballerina. She was America's first major prima ballerina and the first Osage Tribe member to hold the rank. Together with choreographer George Balanchine, she is widely considered to have revolutionized American ballet.

Gelsey Kirkland is an American prima ballerina. She received early ballet training at the School of American Ballet. Kirkland joined the New York City Ballet in 1968 at age 15, at the invitation of George Balanchine. She was promoted to soloist in 1969, and principal in 1972. She went on to create leading roles in many of the great twentieth century ballets by Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, and Antony Tudor, including Balanchine's revival of The Firebird, Robbins' Goldberg Variations, and Tudor's The Leaves are Fading.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tanaquil Le Clercq</span> French-American ballerina (1929–2000)

Tanaquil Le Clercq was an American ballet dancer, born in Paris, France, who became a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet at the age of nineteen. Her dancing career ended abruptly when she was stricken with polio in Copenhagen during the company's European tour in 1956. Eventually regaining most of the use of her arms and torso, she remained paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of her life.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Li Cunxin</span> Chinese-Australian ballet dancer and director (born 1961)

Li Cunxin is a Chinese-Australian former ballet dancer turned stockbroker. He was the artistic director of the Queensland Ballet between 2012 and 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leanne Benjamin</span> Australian ballet dancer (born 1964)

Leanne Faye Benjamin is a retired Australian ballet dancer who was a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet in London. She was appointed artistic director at the Queensland Ballet in 2024. She stepped down from the position on 2 August 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patricia McBride</span> American ballet dancer (born 1942)

Patricia McBride is a ballerina who spent nearly 30 years dancing with the New York City Ballet. McBride joined the New York City Ballet in 1959. She became a principal in 1961, becoming the company's youngest principal. She danced with the company for 30 years, including roles created for her by choreographers George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irina Baronova</span> Russian ballerina and actress (1919–2008)

Irina Mikhailovna Baronova FRAD was a Russian ballerina and actress who was one of the Baby Ballerinas of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, discovered by George Balanchine in Paris in the 1930s. She created roles in Léonide Massine's Le Beau Danube (1924), Jeux d'enfants (1932), and Les Présages (1933); and in Bronislava Nijinska's Les Cent Baisers (1935).

Samuel Wright is a former Australian rules footballer and the current senior coach of Collingwood in the AFL Women's competition. Wright played 136 games for the North Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL), and was a welfare and development coordinator at The Australian Ballet.

The Telstra Ballet Dancer Award has been made annually since 2003, in support of the aspirations of The Australian Ballet's elite young dancers. The winner receives a cash prize of $20,000. This is the biggest prize available specifically to a dancer in Australia.

Ty King-Wall is a New Zealand ballet dancer, an ex principal dancer with The Australian Ballet and current Artistic Director of the Royal New Zealand Ballet.

Dana Stephensen is an Australian ballet dancer. She is a soloist of The Australian Ballet.

Amber Scott is an Australian ballet dancer. She was a principal artist at The Australian Ballet before retiring in 2023 after 22 years with the company.

Daniel Gaudiello is an Australian ballet dancer. He performed with The Australian Ballet from 2004 until his retirement as a principal artist in March 2016 to dance and teach as a freelancer.

Madeleine Eastoe is an Australian retired ballet dancer. She was a principal dancer at The Australian Ballet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tamara Tchinarova</span> French and Australian ballet dancer (1919–2017)

Tamara Tchinarova, also known as Tamara Finch, was a Romanian-born émigré Russian and French ballerina who contributed significantly to the development of Australian dance companies and was a Russian/English interpreter for touring ballet companies. She was a dance writer and author, as Tamara Finch, of a number of non-fiction books. She was the first wife of actor Peter Finch.

Jenna Roberts is a retired Australian ballet dancer, formerly a principal dancer with Birmingham Royal Ballet (BRB)

Sonia Denise Humphrey was an Australian television presenter, newsreader and journalist. Humphrey was a talented ballerina as a child and studied television production before working as an archaeologist for five years; during this period she also converted to Judaism. In the mid 1970s Humphrey worked as a television reporter and newsreader in Australia before presenting opera and ballet simulcasts for the Australian national broadcaster ABC. The management of ABC tried to remove Humphrey as a presenter of opera broadcasts due to her pregnancy, citing "aesthetic reasons". Humphrey pursued legal action against ABC, and the decision was reversed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hannah O'Neill</span> New Zealand ballet dancer

Hannah O'Neill is a New Zealand ballet dancer who is an étoile with the Paris Opera Ballet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Margaret Barr (choreographer)</span> Australian choreographer and teacher of dance-drama

Margaret Barr was an Australian choreographer and teacher of dance-drama who worked in the United States, England, New Zealand and Australia. During a career of more than sixty years, she created over eighty works.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "The Australian Ballet promotes two dancers". Dance Informa. 14 December 2019. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Milsom, Rosemarie (23 September 2016). "Meet Benedicte Bemet, The Australian Ballet's rising star". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 Boon, Maxim (4 December 2015). "Benedicte Bemet crowned Telstra Ballet Dancer of the Year". Limelight. Sydney, Australia. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "The Australian Ballet | Benedicte Bemet". The Australian Ballet. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Story, Hannah (16 February 2024). "A very important date: Australian Ballet's biggest ever production is back". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
  6. 1 2 Bendall, Susan (20 November 2023). "Total immersion". Dance Australia. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  7. ↑ Player, Bree. "Principal ballerina Benedicte Bemet's pre-show wellness rituals". Body + Soul.
  8. 1 2 3 Navin, Sarah (25 September 2018). "The Australian Ballet's Spartacus: All is fair in love, and gladiator gore". bachtrack. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  9. 1 2 Dowler, G.J. (2 August 2023). "Jewels – George Balanchine's glittering triptych of abstract ballets". Classical Source. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  10. ↑ Selar, Paul (16 March 2024). "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland©". Australian Arts Review. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
  11. ↑ "'Sublime': Mackay dancer Benedicte Bemet wows Brisbane audiences in Swan Lake". The Courier Mail. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. 25 October 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
  12. ↑ Byrne, Tim (22 December 2023). "Australia on stage: the best theatre, musicals, dance and opera of 2023. Swan Lake". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
  13. ↑ Selar, Paul (26 February 2023). "The Australian Ballet: Ballet Under the Stars". Australian Arts Review. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  14. ↑ Lancaster, Lynne (18 November 2023). "The Australian Ballet In The Dream / Marguerite And Armand : A Double Bill To Savour". Sydney Arts Guide. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  15. 1 2 Lois, Leila (14 December 2022). "How The Australian Ballet is drastically cutting injury rates". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
  16. ↑ Bailey, John (14 April 2022). "The ballet unlike any you've seen before – and why it'll set a new standard". The Age. Melbourne, Australia. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  17. ↑ Mercer, Margaret (28 February 2022). "REVIEW: The Australian Ballet's 'Anna Karenina'". Dance Australia. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
  18. ↑ Russell, Stephen A (4 August 2020). "Australian Ballet puts Spartacus, The Merry Widow and Bodytorque online". TimeOut. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  19. ↑ "Capriccio. Bodytorque.Digital". The Australian Ballet. Archived from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  20. ↑ Jones, Deborah. "Benedicte Bemet's Giselle". deborah jones: FollowSpot. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  21. 1 2 Fortescue, Elizabeth (1 December 2016). "Benedicte Bemet set to pass the torch on the Telstra Ballet Dancer Award at opening night of Coppelia". The Daily Telegraph. Sydney, Australia. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
  22. ↑ Gordon, Georgie (27 April 2024). "'I love feeling comfortable': What you'll never see this ballerina wearing". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  23. ↑ The Australian Ballet (23 September 2014). A DAY IN THE LIFE OF BENEDICTE BEMET . Retrieved 30 December 2024– via YouTube.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.