Soloist

“Emily Grizzell's Wendy is a can-do girl who figures everything out from sewing on shadows to staring down a ship of pirates. Her sparring with evil Captain Hook (played by swarthy RWB principal Jaime Vargas) -- and all on pointe, too -- is a highlight, as she becomes transformed into an empowered, newly-knickered heroine.” - Winnipeg Free Press, 2006

“..[a] standout in this non-stop test of female endurance and precision was Emily Grizzell as the quicksilver princess in the bluebird pas de deux” -  Winnipeg Free Press, 2005

“Lead couple Emily Grizzell and her dashing partner romped through Balanchine’s fleet footed dance set to Tchaikovsky’s unfinished Third Piano Concerto with panache” - The National Post, 2003

A native of Spokane, Washington, Emily Grizzell is embarking on her 13th season with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet. Grizzell trained at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School Professional Division and graduated in 1996. In 1997, she joined the Company as an apprentice. She moved her way up through the ranks of the Company and became a soloist for the 2005/06 season.

Grizzell has performed many feature roles while dancing with the RWB. Her favourite role is Juliet in Rudi van Dantzig’s Romeo & Juliet. She enjoys the chance to bring sincerity and humanity to the characters she is given to bring to life on stage, such as The Cowgirl in Agnes de Mille’s Rodeo, Nancy in Val Caniparoli’s A Cinderella Story, Wendy in Jorden Morris’ Peter Pan, the Taberna lead in Mauricio Wainrot’s Carmina Burana, Papagena in Mark Godden’s The Magic Flute, and the Third Song in van Dantzig’s Four Last Songs. She also relishes the chance to challenge her versatility in the classics, as Princess Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty and Clara in Nutcracker, (a role performed countless times in her parents living room as a child), and to indulge in the pure joy of movement and music as the lead female in George Balanchine’s Allegro Brillante and the Russian Girl in Serenade.

Grizzell has participated in the New York International Ballet Competition and as a finalist was asked to perform Balanchine’s Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux at the event’s Gala performance.

This past season presented a whole new and exciting challenge for Grizzell and her husband, RWB dancer Amar Dhaliwal as they entered parenthood with the birth of their daughter, Lucie. For this reason, Grizzell missed the first half of the season, returning to dance a challenging pas de trois in Swan Lake and to perform the lead role of Nancy in Val Caniparoli’s A Cinderella Story.