Lynne Charles becomes new Artistic Director of English National Ballet School
English National Ballet School has announced that dancer, teacher, and creator of 4Pointe, Lynne Charles will become its new Artistic Director in September 2024 when she succeeds Viviana Durante.
Amanda Skoog, Executive Director of English National Ballet School, said, “Her experiences in both America and Europe will give ENBS a specific point of difference and open many doors to the school and our students.”
Lynne Charles’ 35-year international dance career saw her perform with Hamburg Ballet for 12 years, where she was the muse for many of John Neumeier‘s creations, and with Bejart Ballet Lausanne, the Ballet National Roland Petit de Marseille, and as a Principal Guest Artist with English National Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet.
As the creator and teacher of 4pointe – a somatic and mindful method of working on pointe – Charles has taught at companies including English National Ballet, Hamburg Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, as well as Royal Danish Ballet School and San Francisco Ballet School.
Lynne Charles noted that “Over the course of its history ENBS has cemented itself as one of the leading centres for dance training in the world, and it is a privilege to build on this and help produce dancers that are ready to meet the challenges of today.
“It is my belief that formal classical ballet training is essential for every dancer to begin their career, and it is my ambition to further develop the syllabus at ENBS to produce well-rounded dancers that go on to enjoy successful careers with the top ballet companies in the UK and internationally.
“I also plan for ENBS to become the home of 4pointe and be used as a unique tool to enhance the teachers’ training and students’ education, as well as continuing the programme’s far-reaching impact on teachers outside of the School.”
Aaron S. Watkin, Artistic Director of English National Ballet said, “Lynne will bring a wealth of knowledge as a renowned ballerina and a world-class dance educator. I look forward to continued collaboration with English National Ballet School under her direction.”
Lynne Charles – Biography
About Lynne Charles
Lynne Charles completed her training at Harkness House for Ballet Arts, the School of American Ballet and the American Ballet Theater School in New York City.
As the creator and teacher of 4pointe, a somatic and mindful method of working on pointe.
Lynne has taught 4pointe at English National Ballet, Hamburg Ballet, Badisches Staats Theater, Ballet am Rhein Dusseldorf, Les Ballet des Monte Carlo, Royal Danish Ballet, Bundes Jugend Ballet Hamburg, San Francisco Ballet, as well as Royal Danish Ballet School, San Francisco Ballet School and Folkwang University of the Arts. She also works as a coach with professional dancers from around the world. Find out more at www.4-pointe.com.
Lynne began her dancing career with American Ballet Theater 2nd Company and Geneva Ballet, before joining Hamburg Ballet in 1974. During her 12 years at the company, John Neumeier created multiple roles for her in his ballets The Legend of Arthur, The Sleeping Beauty, As You Like It, Petrushka, Giselle, Firebird, The Age of Anxiety and more. She also danced in Bejart Ballet Lausanne, the Ballet National Roland Petit de Marseille (Scheherazade (created for her), Coppelia, L’Arlesienne, Puss in Boots, The Devil in Love, Nutcracker) and as a guest with Birmingham Royal Ballet, Malmo Ballet in Sweden, Columbia City Ballet in the USA, and Aalto Ballet Essen (Germany).
Danced as a Guest Artist with ENB between 1991-1995, performing lead roles in Natalia Makarova’s Swan Lake, Ben Stevenson’s Four Last Songs, George Balanchine’s Symphony in C, John Cranko’s Onegin and The Taming of the Shrew, Rudolf Nureyev’s Romeo & Juliet, and Harald Lander’s Etudes
Lynne Charles has worked as a Ballet Mistress, Guest Ballet Mistress and Guest Teacher in companies around the world, including Hamburg Ballet, Ballett am Rhein Düsseldorf, San Francisco Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, Les Ballet de Monte Carlo, Ballet Im Revier, National Ballet of China, Houston Ballet, Alonso King’s Lines Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, and more.
She has also created works for Finnish National Ballet, National Ballet of China, Slovenian National Ballet, Dortmund Ballet, Aalto Ballet Essen, Royal Danish Ballet School, Badische Staats Ballet and more.
Between 2014 and 2019, she was professor of Classical Ballet at the Folkwang University.
Graham Spicer, aka ‘Gramilano’, is a writer, director and photographer based in Milan. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy. His articles have appeared in various publications from Woman’s Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the Danza in Italia column for Dancing Times magazine. Graham was the historical advisor on Codice Carla, the 2023 documentary on Carla Fracci.
Graham also works as a dance photographer, and his photos have appeared in many books, theatre programmes, and magazines, including Dancing Times, Dance Spirit and Ballet2000, as well as all the major Italian newspapers.
He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.
