Australia Dancing - Heathcote, Steven (1964

Heathcote, Steven (1964 - )

McMurdo, Don: Steven Heathcote and Fiona Tonkin in 'Giselle' Act I, the Australian Ballet, 1992

Steven Heathcote took up dancing after being taken on a school excursion to see a West Australian Ballet production of Nutcracker. He was trained in Perth by Shelley Rae and Kira Bousloff and at the Australian Ballet School, which he joined in 1981.

Accepted into the Australian Ballet in 1983, Heathcote was promoted to soloist in 1985 and principal in 1987. His guest appearances overseas have been with a variety of companies including the Kirov Ballet in 1989 and American Ballet Theatre in 1991 and 1993, as well as Birmingham Royal Ballet, Ballet Nacional de Cuba, The Royal Danish Ballet, Kiev Ballet and Latvian National Ballet. He has had many roles created on him including leading parts in works by Australian choreographers such as Stephen Baynes (1914, Beyond Bach, Unspoken Dialogues), Graeme Murphy (Nutcracker, Swan Lake), Stephen Page (Alchemy, Totem), Natalie Weir (Mirror, Mirror) and Stanton Welch (Madame Butterfly, Corroboree, Cinderella).

Heathcote is the recipient of three Helpmann Awards, two Mo Awards and an Australian Dance Award for outstanding performance by an individual. In 1991 he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for his services to dance.

In May 2007, Heathcote announced his decision to step down from principal roles following the upcoming 'New Romantics' season. After 24 years of dancing with the Australian Ballet, 20 of them as principal artist, Heathcote has shifted his focus to education and coaching within the company, as well as taking on character roles.

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Find more about Heathcote, Steven in:

Collection - OzLife
Internet - Google
Articles - New York Public Library Dance Collection
Pictures - Picture Australia