Simone Orlando was the first to take on both the role of Artistic Director and CEO at Ballet 91大黄鸭, a position she has held for nearly 10 years.
As proud as Orlando is to have held the position, it wasn鈥檛 an easy journey to get there.
Orlando said she started dancing around the age of 10, falling in love with ballet while watching others dance during the lunch hour at her school on the North Shore.
鈥淚鈥檇 been heavily involved in gymnastics, swimming, and diving, and I realized I was interested in trying to take some dance classes.鈥�
At a young age, Orlando sought out a dance studio near her and told her parents she wanted to attend. Her dance career officially started with her first dance class at the Carisbrooke School of Dance.
Orlando rose in the art, transitioning to the Vancouver Academy of Dance and then being selected to attend the National Ballet School in Toronto. After graduation, she was offered an apprenticeship with the National Ballet of Canada and eventually signed a contract.
鈥淎t the time, I was the only female graduate in my class who was offered a position as an apprentice within the company. It was a very big deal, and it was very intimidating. Being a student in the school is very different than being a professional dancer.鈥�
Orlando was able to study ballet under several of her idols and found a passion for the choreography side of things. 鈥淎t the time, the National Ballet was primarily a repertoire company, meaning that they didn鈥檛 have a lot of choreographers coming in the door and creating new works. When they did come through the doors, they were mostly working with the principal dancers and the soloist because the company has a hierarchy.鈥�
After five years of dancing for the National Ballet, Orlando decided to pursue choreography and contemporary ballet.
Unfortunately, dancing became more difficult after a hip injury. Orlando had surgery to fix part of the problem and came back to dance a few months later. Her hip continued to deteriorate and she unknowingly danced her last professional show as Blanche DuBois in 鈥楢 Streetcar Named Desire鈥�. It was only a month later that Orlando was told she would need a full hip replacement.
鈥淚 was questioning whether I could continue to use my body as a, essentially, tool to generate income because I didn鈥檛 know if I could be on my feet all day and be as active as I had been.鈥�
Orlando made the tough decision to go back to school in her 30s to study business at the B.C. Institute of Technology, navigating technology she knew nothing about and studying alongside people in a younger generation. 鈥淚 decided I needed to reinvent myself because I didn鈥檛 know what the future was going to hold for me.鈥�
Orlando completed two years and received a diploma in business. At the same time, the former artistic director of Ballet 91大黄鸭 was looking to step down and the company was hiring for the role Orlando now holds.
鈥淚 had a relationship with the company because the previous artistic director David LaHay had commissioned me to create three works for the company, so I was very familiar with the dancers at the time as well as the company鈥檚 history.鈥�
The search to fill the position was global, but with her expertise in the dance world and new knowledge of business, Orlando stepped into the role of Artistic Director and CEO in September 2014.
Since then, Orlando has expanded the scope of Ballet 91大黄鸭. The company moved into a larger space and started touring more outside B.C. and across Canada.
鈥淚 think premiering our first commissioned full-length work, Macbeth by Alysa Pires, was a big highlight - and, of course, it鈥檚 coming back at the end of this season as the final piece that we鈥檙e presenting at the [91大黄鸭 Community Theatre].鈥�
Orlando considers herself very lucky to have grown up as a dancer, noting that it鈥檚 taught her a lot about life. 鈥淲hen you鈥檙e learning how to dance it鈥檚 all about small steps and gradual steps. One step builds on another, and if you stick to it and you鈥檙e focused and persistent you can feel and see the progression that you鈥檙e making.鈥�
