Heather Ogden

Last updated
Heather Ogden
Born (1980-12-24) December 24, 1980 (age 43)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Occupation Ballet dancer
Years active1998–present
Spouse
​
(m. 2010⁠–⁠2022)​
Children2
Career
Current group National Ballet of Canada
Dances Ballet

Heather Ogden is a Canadian ballet dancer. She is a principal dancer at the National Ballet of Canada.

Contents

Early life

Ogden was born in Toronto, Ontario. She and her family moved to Richmond, British Columbia when she was 6. After seeing her babysitter dance, Ogden started training at the Richmond Academy of Dance. She graduated in 1998. [1] [2]

Career

In 1998, Ogden joined the National Ballet of Canada as an apprentice, and was promoted to the corps de ballet the following year. [1] Ogden was named Principal Dancer in 2005. [3] She has danced principal roles in productions such as Swan Lake , Romeo and Juliet , The Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella . [3]

Reviewing her performance as Princess Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty , The Globe and Mail called her performance "jaw-dropping. Without so much as a wobble, she seemed to hang in the air for an eternity." [4] On Nijinsky, The Globe and Mail called Ogden's dancing "full of tenderness and pathos" as her character's "marriage (and her husband's mind) falls apart later on." [5]

Outside of the National Ballet, Ogden has also made guest appearances with The Suzanne Farrell Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet, Hamburg Ballet, Munich Ballet and multiple galas. In 2014, she became an ambassador for Rolex Canada. [3]

Ogden was featured in 2013 short film Lost In Motion II. [6]

Selected repertoire

Personal life

In 2010, Ogden married fellow National Ballet principal dancer Guillaume Côté. [16] The couple has two children. [17] They separated in 2022.

Ogden grew up playing softball, but gave up to focus on ballet. In 2017, she threw a ceremonial first pitch at a Toronto Blue Jays baseball game. [18]

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References

  1. 1 2 "How National Ballet Dancer Heather Ogden Lives Her Life with Passion and Balance". Best Health. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  2. ↑ "Cupcakes & Conversation with Heather Ogden, Principal, The National Ballet of Canada". Ballet News. 28 May 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Heather Ogden Principal Dancer". National Ballet of Canada. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  4. 1 2 "National Ballet presents a Sleeping Beauty suspended in wonder". The Globe and Mail. 11 March 2012.
  5. 1 2 "Review: Nijinsky a rich, powerful ballet that demands to be rewatched". The Globe and Mail. 24 November 2017.
  6. ↑ "Heather Ogden Dances In Breathtaking 'Lost In Motion II' (VIDEO)". Huffington Post Canada. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  7. ↑ "Swan Lake Principal Casting Announced! Six Debuts, Heather Ogden Returns to the Stage". Ballet News. 23 May 2017.
  8. ↑ "National Ballet of Canada: Romeo and Juliet – review". The Guardian. 18 April 2013.
  9. ↑ "The Nutcracker Principal Casting Announced". Ballet Class. 14 November 2018.
  10. ↑ "Principal Dancer Xiao Nan Yu Bids Farewell In The Merry Widow". Broadway World Toronto. 3 June 2019.
  11. ↑ "Cupcakes & Conversation with Heather Ogden, Principal, The National Ballet of Canada". Ballet News. 28 May 2017.
  12. ↑ "The Winter's Tale". Lincoln Center. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  13. ↑ "Through the looking glass". Post City. 7 November 2012.
  14. ↑ "Three dancers take on one tragic heroine in the National Ballet of Canada's Anna Karenina". The Star. 6 November 2018.
  15. ↑ "Flash Pointe: Ballerina Heather Ogden on Playing Carmen". Flare. 5 June 2013. Archived from the original on 30 October 2020. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  16. ↑ "Pas de deux: National Ballet of Canada principal dancers wed". National Post. 19 July 2010.
  17. ↑ "Ballerina Heather Ogden on fitness, pregnancy and the importance of body positivity". Elle. 9 May 2018.
  18. ↑ "Ballet dancer brings Jays fans to their toes with first pitch". CBC News. 26 July 2017.
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