English National Ballet School – Samira Saidi is new Director (of Dance)

Samira Saidi. © ENBS. (Click image for larger version)

PRESS RELEASE

ENGLISH NATIONAL BALLET SCHOOL ANNOUCES THE APPOINTMENT OF SAMIRA SAIDI AS DIRECTOR OF DANCE

3^rd May 2012

English National Ballet School is delighted to announce that it has appointed Samira Saidi as its new Director of Dance. Samira will be joining the school in August, following an illustrious career including twenty years dancing with Birmingham Royal Ballet and also tutor at Elmhurst School for Dance along with associations with many prestigious dance organisations within the UK.

Samira was born in Manchester and trained with Noreen Bush at the Bush Davies School where, at fifteen years old, she won the RAD Solo Seal Award and the Adeline Genée Silver Medal. Continuing her training at The Royal Ballet School, she was chosen and coached by Sir Frederick Ashton, to dance the Fonteyn role in Birthday Offering. At 18, she joined Birmingham Royal Ballet where roles created for her included: title role in David Bintley’s The Snow Queen & Sybil Vane in The Picture of Dorian Gray, Alice in Hobson’s Choice and many other principal roles in the company’s repertoire.

Samira retired from dancing in 1999 to concentrate on teaching, choreography and raising her children, initially working for Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Education department. She has taught both the RBS Junior and Senior Associate and in 2004, she joined Elmhurst School for Dance as teacher and tutor to the graduate women, Ballet Mistress and Resident Choreographer and most recently conceived and managed Elmhurst’s satellite Associate Programme run throughout the UK.

Regarding her appointment Samira says, ‘Over thirty years of experience comprising both performance and dance education has instilled within me the importance and value of treasuring, retaining and passing on the history and honesty of the profession and I am now greatly looking forward to taking up my new role as Dance Director at English National Ballet School’

Anu Giri, Co-Director of ENBS says, ‘We are delighted to welcome Samira as the new Director of Dance. We believe her skills and experience as a dancer, teacher and manager will add great value to our current team and we look forward to strengthening and developing the artistic vision and excellence of the School under her leadership.’

ENDS