Lucia Lacarra

Principal dancer

Lucia Lacarra, born in San Sebastián, knew from earliest childhood that she was born to be a ballerina. Whenever she saw pictures of the ballet school in Monte Carlo, sponsored by Grace Kelly, she cried because she still had no chance to dance.

It was only when in her small Basque hometown a studio was opened that she was able to begin with lessons. She was ten at that time. Soon she was sent to a summer course directed by Rosella Hightower. There Lucia's mother was strongly advised to support her daughter's obvious talent. So she was sent to San Sebastián to Mentxu Medel who worked with Lucia for three years in a completely unselfish way to prepare her for the audition to Victor Ullate's school in Madrid. Already in her second year there she was given a contract to the Ballet de Victor Ullate. She was just fifteen when she danced Balanchine's Allegro Brillante. In the course of four seasons this was followed by Concerto Barocco, Fokine's Les Sylphides, four works by Hans van Manen, Nils Christe's Before Nightfall as well as four pieces by her mentor Ullate who gave her the necessary self-confidence.

In 1994, she joined Roland Petit's Ballets de Marseille as a Principal. Petit immediately entrusted her with the role of Esmeralda, with Patrick Dupont as her partner, in Notre Dame de Paris, replacing Dominique Khalfouni. From Roland Petit she learned above all to always be emotionally present on stage and she felt that in this company everything was danced in a somewhat more classical style. Within three years she danced the leading roles in seven ballets by Roland Petit, four of which were created on her, most notably Angélique in Le Guépard and, as partner of Nicolas Le Riche, in the famous Le Jeune homme et la Mort. In her pursuit of classicism she then decided to join the San Francisco Ballet. Under the direction of Helgi Tomasson she could dance Giselle, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty for the first time, i.e. some of the classical roles that a young ballerina has to master. The Cage, In the Night and Dances at a Gathering by Jerome Robbins became part of her repertoire, as well as six Balanchine ballets, from Serenade to Jewels, and Victor Gsovsky's Grand Pas Classique, three ballets by Helgi Tomasson, MacMillian's The Invitation, van Manen's Black Cake, Nacho Duato's Without Words, Roland Petit's L'Arlésienne and Desdemona in Lar Lubovitch's contemporary Othello.

Lucia Lacarra has joined the Bayerisches Staatsballett with the 2002/2003 season in order to return towards the leading European choreographers. In the course of the first three months in Munich she danced Raymonda, Tatjana and Odette/Odile as well as the third pas de deux of In the Night, always together with her partner for many years, Cyril Pierre, who has also joined the company as a Principal. Together they were guests in the big theatres around the world. She also danced in Portrait John Neumeier in Jupiter Symphony and In the Blue Garden. In autumn 2003, she danced Louise in John Neumeier's The Nutcracker as well as Titania/Hippolyta in his A Midsummer Night's Dream and the title role in Ivan Liška's new production of Sleeping Beauty.

Lucia Lacarra was awarded with the Prix Nijinsky in Monte Carlo in December 2002, followed by the Prix Benois de la danse which she won in Moskau in April 2003. She was nominated in 2004 and 2005 for the Merkur Theaterpreis in Munich. In November 2005 she was awarded with the Spanish Premio Nacional de Danza 2005. This prize, endowed with 30.000,- Euro is one of the highest awards the Spanish government gives out. In 2007 she was announced honorary citizen and cultural messenger of her home town San Sebastián. In 2008, she was awarded the honorary title 'Kammertänzerin' by the Bavarian Ministry of Culture.

With the end of the season 2015/2016, Lucia Lacarra has left the Bayerisches Staatsballett.

Debut 2003/2004
Marguerite in Lady of the Camellias (J. Neumeier)
Brahms-Schönberg Quartett (G. Balanchine)
the second detail (W. Forsythe)

Debut 2004/2005
Juliet in Romeo and Juliet (J. Cranko)
Five Tangos (H. van Manen)
Black Cake (H. van Manen)
Agon (G. Balanchine)
Nikija in La Bayadère (P. Bart/M. Petipa)

Debut 2005/2006
Sophie in The Silver Rose (G. Murphy),creation
Century Rolls (D. Bombana), creation

Debut 2006/2007
Giselle (P. Wright)
Medora in Le Corsaire (M. Petipa/I. Liška)
The Woman in Song of the Earth (K. MacMillan)

Debut 2007/2008
Ariel in The Tempest (J. Mannes), creation
Violakonzert/II (M. Schläpfer), creation
Adagio Hammerklavier (H. van Manen)
Legende (J. Cranko)

Debut 2008/2009
Zobéide in Shéhérazade (M. Fokine)
Odette in Once Upon An Ever After (T. Kohler), creation

Debut 2009/2010
1st Pas de deux in Artifact (W. Forsythe)
The French Ballerina in Série Noire - A choreographic murder mystery (T. Kohler)

Debut 2010/2011
The Old Men and Me (H. van Manen)
Princess Natalia in Illusions - Like Swan Lake (J. Neumeier)

Debut 2011/2012
Dulcinea in Don Quijote (R. Barra after M. Petipa/A. Gorski, tradition)
Katharina in The Taming of the Shrew (J. Cranko)
Princess Odette in Illusions - Like Swan Lake (J. Neumeier)
The Oldest Sister in Las Hermanas (K. MacMillan)
3rd Pas de deux in Goldberg-Variations (J. Robbins)

Debut 2012/2013
Soloist 2nd suite in Choreartium (L. Massine)
Broken Fall (R. Maliphant)

Debut 2013/2014
Hippolyta/Titania in A Midsummer Night's Dream (J. Neumeier)
Spiral Pass (R. Maliphant)

Debut 2015/2016
Soloist 2nd movement in Symphony in C (G. Balanchine)