Royal Ballet Principal dancer Alexander Campbell has been appointed as the Royal Academy of Dance's new Artistic Director from 2 April 2024 succeeding Gerard Charles, who retired last year. His last performances with The Royal Ballet will be as Des Grieux in Kenneth MacMillan’s Manon on 2 and 8 March 2024., Australian-born Alexander comes to the RAD after over a decade at The Royal Ballet.
Born in Sydney, Campbell joined Birmingham Royal Ballet after graduating from The Royal Ballet School in 2005. In 2011, he joined the Royal Ballet as a Soloist; promoted to First Soloist in 2012 and Principal in 2016.
His Principal roles have included Albrecht (Giselle), Basilio (Don Quixote), Franz (Coppélia), Prince Florimund (The Sleeping Beauty), the Prince (The Nutcracker), Colas (La Fille mal gardée), Young Man (The Two Pigeons), Oberon (The Dream), Romeo (Romeo and Juliet), Des Grieux and Lescaut (Manon), Florizel (The Winter’s Tale) and roles in Dances at a Gathering, Jewels, Within the Golden Hour, Woolf Works and Carbon Life and more.
Campbell said, “the RAD was formative in my training and I believe has the power to shape how people interact with ballet and dance. I am motivated and excited to play a part in how we develop and offer these exceptional and positive interactions, not only for our current and future members and students but also for society in general.”
Kevin O’Hare, Director of The Royal Ballet, said, “Alexander has been a key member of both our Royal companies for almost two decades. His passion for dance has always been obvious from across his many stage performances in a vibrant and diverse range of roles, to his great aptitude in more recent years as a presenter for World Ballet Day and his concept production for The Limit. I know he will continue as a wonderful advocate for dance in this exciting new role and I look forward to our continued working relationship providing more people with positive experiences of our powerful artform.”