Backstage with Michele Wiles
Michele Wiles is tall and willowy in stature. Put on the tutu and the crown, and she is every little girl's dream of a ballerina. And a ballerina is just what she is, in one of the world's most prestigious companies, American Ballet Theatre.
Three seems to be the magic age for a little girl to start the "I want to be a ballerina" dream and Michele was no different. Born in Pasadena, Maryland she began as so many do in her local dance school and at age 10 was accepted at the Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington, DC. After attending a summer program at The Royal Ballet School in England, she was awarded a scholarship to White Lodge, the RB's Lower School but her parents thought she was too young to be so far away from them and the Kirov Academy, being in a close proximity to her home was a perfect choice.
The Kirov Academy, established by Oleg Vinogradov is aligned with the Kirov Ballet School in Russia. Students are under the tutorage of one teacher each year and Michele's favorites were Adrian Dellas and the famous ballerina Alla Sizova. Wiles found it difficult to adjust to the one teacher a year style of training but admired Sizova so much she requested to remain in her class for an additional year. Being a boarding student at the Academy was difficult, "you lived under strict conditions, no food or TV in the dorm rooms and you are weighed every week." The school, however, had its perks too. Wiles had the opportunity of going to Russia where Vinogradov was preparing a documentary to compare the training in the schools in Washington and St. Petersburg. She says "it was a thrilling experience to sit in the Czar's box in the Marinsky Theatre." She also received her academic education at the Academy but finished up on correspondence.
Eager to perform, Michele asked to be entered into several international competitions while still a student. Coached by Sizova and Vladimir Djouloukhodze, she emerged triumphant winning the Gold Medal at Varna in 1996, the Bronze Medal in Nagoya Japan and was a finalist at the Paris International Dance Competition. She was a Princess Grace Foundation - USA Dance Fellowship recipient in 1999-2000 and won the Erik Bruhn Prize in 2002.
American Ballet Theatre was always Michele's goal. She became a member of the ABT Studio Company in 1997 and the next year she joined the corps of ABT being promoted to Soloist in 2000 and Principal in 2005. Her first solo role was Flower Girl in Don Quixote. Presently, she dances a full range of the company's classical ballets but her favorite is Odette/Odile in Swan Lake partnered by Marcelo Gomes. They both like to rehearse a lot and it makes her feel secure in his partnering. Her repertoire also includes ballets by Balanchine, Macmillan, Tudor, Twyla Tharp and, Mark Morris and she has had many roles created for her.
An American, with Russian training Michele is now experiencing the influence of two former Royal Ballet dancers, ABT ballet mistress Georgina Parkinson, who rehearses Michele in her repertoire and international master teacher David Howard, who's class she attends daily. Parkinson gives her free reign on the interpretation of a role and guides her in the correct direction and says that Wiles "is a very interesting dancer with great imagination and power. She is the quintessential American ballerina". Michele began working with Howard following a back injury to release the tension in her body and find another way of working in class. He says that she "encompasses all the qualities of a unique American Ballerina." Wiles, is also being coached by Gelsey Kirkland, for ABT's new production of Sleeping Beauty, learning both Aurora and the Lilac Fairy. As a student, she admired Kirkland after seeing a video of Baryshnikov's Nutcracker, even though she had never seen her perform in person. Wiles, is quite happy with her current roles but would like to tackle Don Q, Manon and Giselle in the future.
In her spare time, Michele enjoys reading, films and theatre. She recently attended the opening night of The Glass Menagerie with Jessica Lange, while on tour with ABT in London. She also enjoys teaching class and choreographing. Wiles, takes her position as a principal dancer very seriously and feels it is a responsibility dancing for a major company. She would advise young dancers to "have confidence in yourself, work hard and believe in your dreams." American Ballet Theatre performs in several American cities throughout the year and will be at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York May 14th through July 7th.