Who is Helgi Tomasson?
Get to know the choreographer of Swan Lake
Helgi Tomasson, one of the most venerated classical dancers of his generation, concluded his 37th and final season as Artistic Director and Principal Choreographer of San Francisco Ballet in 2022. Born in Iceland, he danced with Harkness Ballet, The Joffrey Ballet, and New York City Ballet, where he distinguished himself as a dancer of technical purity, musicality, and intelligence.
Tomasson assumed leadership of SF Ballet in 1985. Under his direction, SF Ballet became a company widely recognized as one of the finest in the world. Tomasson balanced devotion to the classics with an emphasis on new works, cultivating frequent collaborations and commissions with choreographers such as William Forsythe, Christopher Wheeldon, Alexei Ratmansky, Trey McIntyre, Cathy Marston, and Mark Morris, among many others.
He choreographed more than 50 works for the Company, including full-length productions of Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, Romeo & Juliet (taped for Lincoln Center at the Movies’ Great American Dance), Giselle, and Nutcracker (taped for PBS’s Great Performances). He conceptualized the 1995 UNited We Dance festival, in which SF Ballet hosted 12 international companies; the 2008 New Works Festival, which included 10 world premieres by 10 acclaimed choreographers; 2018 Unbound: A Festival of New Works; and the next@90 festival celebrating SF Ballet’s 90th anniversary season in 2023.
Tomasson has also connected SF Ballet to the world, through co-commissions with American Ballet Theatre, The Royal Ballet, and Dutch National Ballet; and major tours to Paris, London, New York City, China, and his native Iceland. In 2020, Tomasson received the San Francisco Arts Medallion, created by the Museum of Performance + Design to recognize those individuals whose leadership, action, and generosity have benefited the cultural life of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Tickets to see Tomasson’s Swan Lake Act II, among other select pieces by Hans van Manen and Ben Stevenson at Stanford Live’s Starry Nights are on sale now.
SF Ballet Backstage
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