The Paris Opera (L’Opéra national de Paris) launched the Paris Opera Junior Ballet (Junior Ballet de l’Opéra national de Paris) in September for the 2024-2025 season.
The junior ballet comprises eighteen dancers aged between 17 and 23. These dancers were selected through auditions in early July to be on the two-year professionalisation training programme.
The inauguration members are:
Female dancers
Ève Belguet, French (Paris Opera Ballet School)
Grace Boyd, American (Boston Ballet II)
Angélique Brosse, French (on fixed-term contract with the Paris Opera Ballet)
Typhaine Gervais, French (Paris Opera Ballet School)
Yoon Seo Lee, Korean (Korean National University of Arts)
Shani Obadia, French (CNSMDP*)
Laure Ravera, French (Paris Opera Ballet School)
India Shackel, New Zealander (Australian Ballet School)
Natalie Vikner, French-Swedish (CNSMDP*)
Male dancers
Jaime Almaraz Baizán, Spanish (Finnish National Ballet Youth Company)
Davide Alphandery, Italian (Scuola di Ballo dell'Accademia Teatro alla Scala)
Junsu Lee, Korean (on fixed-term contract with the Paris Opera Ballet)
Mei Matsunaga, French/Japanese (Paris Opera Ballet School)
Sergio Napodano, Italian (Scuola di Ballo dell'Accademia Teatro alla Scala)
Isaac Petit, French (CNSMDP*)
Emryck Sanchez-Raffy, French (Paris Opera Ballet School)
Santiago Sales Manzanera, Spanish (on fixed-term contract with the Paris Opera Ballet)
Jackson Smith-Leishman, Australian (Royal Ballet Upper School)
** Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris
Six more will be selected to join the junior ballet starting September 2025. For more details about the Paris Opera Junior Ballet, click here.
The image is from the Paris Opera Ballet’s Instagram post. Photograph by Julien Benhamou.
Separately, Jasmine Atrous, Rémi Hairy-Araujo, Natalie Henry, Yeeun Lee, Martin Paul, Indira Sas, and Shale Wagman joined the company through open auditions as quadrilles, or corps members.
Adieu
Étoile Laura Hecquet retired from the stage after her final performance on 10 October. Étoile Myriam Ould-Braham and Premier Danseur Audric Bezard retired in June.
Promotions
Thomas Docquir and Jack Gasztowtt were promoted to the rank of Premier Danseur effective January.
Bleuenn Battistoni was promoted to Étoile in March.