Russell Clarke

As a teacher, I strive to create a nurturing environment while encouraging my students to consistently work to the best of their ability. My classes are challenging for both the body and the mind. I focus on proper body alignment, placement, articulation, and musicality. Natural ability is one very small part of the equation; what students put in to each and every class is what determines success.

Russell Clarke was born and raised in Glasgow, Scotland. He received his ballet training at the Royal Ballet School in London. During his time at the Royal Ballet School he performed with the Royal Ballet Company in productions that included The Sleeping Beauty and Swan Lake.

Clarke joined Ballet Arizona in 2007 and performed principal roles in Don Quixote, Christopher Wheeldon’s Polyphonia, Twyla Tharp’s The Golden Section, George Balanchine’s Movements for Piano and Orchestra, La Valse, La Sonnambula, The Four Temperaments, and Ib Andersen’s Play, 1052, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Mosaik, Symphonie Classique, and The Nutcracker.

Clarke received critical acclaim for the role of the Poet in George Balanchine’s La Sonnambula and was praised by the New York Times for the role of Phlegmatic in Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments. Clarke originated a principal role in Andersen’s Diversions, which was seen on the Kennedy Center Stage in June 2010. In Clarke’s final season with Ballet Arizona he originated the principal role in Ib Andersen’s world premiere of Cinderella, which received critical acclaim.

After retiring from Ballet Arizona, Clarke went on to direct the Community Dance Academy at Walnut Hill School for the Arts for four years. He is currently an associate professor of dance at Boston Conservatory at Berklee where he has taught for the past five years.