Benjamin
Millepied
Born in Bordeaux in 1977, Benjamin Millepied entered the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse in Lyon at the age of thirteen before going on train at the School of American Ballet. In 1994 he won the Prix de Lausanne and the same year Jerome Robbins chose him to play the main role in 2 & 3 Part Inventions. After joining New York City Ballet in 1995, he was promoted to soloist in 1998 and principal dancer in 2002. At New York City Ballet, he performed the principal roles in ballets by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins and Peter Martins and appeared in new works by Angelin Preljocaj (La Stravaganza), Mauro Bigonzetti (Vespro, In Vento), Alexei Ratmanski (Concerto DSCH) and Christopher Wheeldon (Mercurial Manoeuvres…).
Meanwhile, Benjamin Millepied made his debuts as a choreographer with a piece for the students of Lyon’s CNSMD in 2001. The following year he presented Triple Duet at Sadler’s Wells in London, and then directed the film Chaconne with Olivier Simola (2003). In 2005 NYCB commissioned Double Aria to an original score by Daniel Ott (2005) along with 28 Variations on a Theme by Paganini for its School. There followed other creations for Sadler’s Wells, the Maison de la danse in Lyon, the Ballet of the Grand Théâtre de Genève, New York’s Joyce Theater, the American Ballet Theater’s Studio Company, Mikhaïl Baryschnikov (in collaboration with Olivier Simola), the ABT, the Pacific Northwest Ballet, Danses Concertantes, New York City Ballet, Het National Ballet, the Metropolitan Opera, the Pennsylvania Ballet, the Ballet of the Mariinsky Theatre and the Paris Opera Ballet (Amoveo, 2006; Triade, 2008; Daphnis et Chloé, 2014; Together Alone, 2015).
Benjamin Millepied has also been the artistic director of the Morris Dance Center (New York, 2004-2005,) and “choreographer-in-residence” at the Baryshnikov Arts Center (New York, 2006-2007). In 2010, he was choreographer and advisor for the Oscar-winning film Black Swan. In 2011, he left New York City Ballet and founded his own company L.A. Dance Project. Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres, Benjamin Millepied was awarded the United States Artists Wynn Fellowship in 2007.