Artistic Director
Position generously supported by Aud Jebsen
Federico Bonelli became Artistic Director of Northern Ballet in May 2022, before this he was a Principal of The Royal Ballet where he had danced since 2003.
Federico was born in Genoa and grew up in Casale Monferrato, he trained locally and at the Turin Dance Academy. His awards include first prize at the Rieti International Ballet Competition and a Prix de Lausanne scholarship. He joined Zürich Ballet in 1996, promoted to Soloist in 1997. He joined Dutch National Ballet in 1999, promoted to Principal in 2002 before joining The Royal Ballet where he danced and created numerous roles until retiring as a Principal dancer to take up the role at Northern Ballet.
In 2019 Federico graduated from the Clore Leadership Programme (The Clore Fellowship) and is a Professional Certified Coach. He also curated the programme for The Royal Ballet activities in Doncaster as part of the Doncaster Creates festival, has coached Royal Ballet repertory, and co-facilitated The Royal Ballet’s Inclusivity Focus Group. Federico is a non-executive director and member of the Board of Parents and Carers in Performing Arts (PiPA), and a member of the external Steering Group of Chance to Dance.
Since joining Northern Ballet in 2022, Federico has programmed work that celebrates the Company’s rich history, including landmark revivals of Christopher Gable and Massimo Morricone’s Romeo & Juliet and A Christmas Carol which both received high audience and critical acclaim in 2024. Federico has commissioned new works for the Company by Tiler Peck, Mthuthuzeli November, Kristen McNally and Benjamin Ella.
Alongside this, Federico works to broaden the range of stories represented on the ballet stage and to champion inclusivity in classical ballet. Under Federico dancers from Northern Ballet’s Ability, a programme for dancers with additional learning support needs, have performed on the main stage at Leeds Grand Theatre with the Company, and the 2024 Three Short Ballets programme saw the first inclusive piece of dance featured in that programme.
In 2024 Northern Ballet announced Federico’s first full-length commission for Northern Ballet, Gentleman Jack which unites an impressive creative team to tell the story of Yorkshire icon Anne Lister through ballet for the first time
Header photo by Andrej Uspenski.