A native of Havana, Cuba, Joan Boada trained at the National Ballet School of Cuba and danced with seven companies (including Ballet Nacional de Cuba, Ballet National de Marseille Roland Petit, The Australian Ballet, and Royal Ballet of Flanders) before joining San Francisco Ballet as a principal dancer in 1999. Major roles include Basilio in Tomasson/Possokhov’s Don Quixote, Romeo in Tomasson’s Romeo & Juliet, Bluebird in Tomasson’s The Sleeping Beauty, Albrecht in Tomasson’s Giselle, Nutcracker Prince in Tomasson’s Nutcracker, and Aminta in Morris’ Sylvia. He created roles in Possokhov’s Magrittomania, Fusion, Diving into the Lilacs, and Raymonda Pas de Deux; Wheeldon’s Quaternary and Within the Golden Hour; and Tomasson’s 7 for Eight and On a Theme of Paganini, among others. In addition, Boada has performed lead roles in Ashton’s Symphonic Variations; Balanchine’s Prodigal Son, Bugaku, Square Dance, “Rubies,” Symphony in Three Movements, and Theme and Variations; Forsythe’s Artifact Suite and in the middle, somewhat elevated; the pas de deux from Le Corsaire; Robbins’ Other Dances and Fanfare; and Tomasson’s Blue Rose, Chaconne for Piano and Two Dancers, Prism, and Valses Poeticos. Boada’s honors include an Isadora Duncan Dance Award for ensemble performance in 2003, and various awards at international ballet competitions in 1994 and 1995.