Karen Kain

After graduation she joined the National Ballet of Canada[?], where she became Principal Dancer[?] in 1971, dancing central roles in a wide array of ballets, eventually becoming the most well-known dancer in Canada.

In 1973 she won silver in the women's competition and another silver for Best pas de Deux[?] (with Frank Augustyn[?]) at the second International Ballet Competition[?].

In the late 1970s she stopped dancing for a period, but in 1980 resumed dancing with the National Ballet of Canada[?], where she stayed for 15 years, retiring from dancing in 1997 (one source says 1994).

In 1976 she became an Officer of the Order of Canada and in 1991 became a Companion of the Order of Canada and she has honorary degrees from the University of Toronto, York University, McMaster University[?], Trent University, and the University of British Columbia. In May of 1998, the French Government named her an Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters[?].

She's the president of the Dancer's Transition Centre[?] and in 1992 she received the Performing Arts Award[?]. In 1996 she received the Cartier Lifetime Achievement Award[?], the first Canadian to do so and in 1997 she received the National Arts Centre Award[?].

She's worked as a guest artist with Roland Petit's Le Ballet National de Marseilles, the Bolshoi Ballet[?], the London Festival Ballet[?], The Paris Opera Ballet[?], Hamburg Ballet[?], Vienna State Opera Ballet[?], and Eliot Feld Ballet[?].

In 1998, Ms. Kain returned to the National Ballet of Canada[?], now as part of the senior management team.

Her autobiography is Movement Never Lies (McClelland and Stewart, 1996).

External Links:

• http://www.soundventure.com/web/footnotes/kain
• http://collections.ic.gc.ca/heirloom_series/volume5/296-299.htm
• http://www.national.ballet.ca/company/bios/dir-karenkain.shtml
• http://www.k12.nf.ca/stpeterselem/ballet/page3