Artist Spotlight
 | | | Davit Karapetyan |
10/25/2005
Born in Armenia, new Principal Dancer Davit Karapetyan joins the Company from Zurich Ballet. Here Karapetyan gives his take on San Francisco Ballet and coming to America.
Can you talk about your childhood and how you became a dancer?
I was born in Yerevan, Armenia. When I was young I didn’t like ballet, and was more interested in sports like diving, soccer, and tae kwon do (I have a black belt and was competing regularly).
Everyone in my immediate family is a dancer and they wanted the art to continue on through me. With their urging, I enrolled in an Armenian folk dancing class, which took place in the same building as ballet classes. As I became friends with some of the ballet students, I grew interested and, at 13 years old, began taking ballet classes instead of the folk dancing. Of course, most of the students had already been dancing for five years or more, so I had a lot of catching up to do. But I worked hard and in 1997, won a gold medal at an international ballet competition in Yerevan.
I was then accepted by the Zurich Ballet School and won the Prix de Lausanne’s Professional Dancer’s prize. After that, I returned to Zurich and received a contract with the company, where I danced for the past six years.
What works do you enjoy performing the most?
In Zurich, I performed a lot of works by Heinz Spoerli. I particularly enjoyed Daphnis and Chlöe, The Goldberg Variations, and Eine Lichte, Helle, Schöne Ferne; a work he choreographed that recalls Mozart. Solo by Hans van Manen is another one of my favorites. Overall, I like both classical and contemporary dance.
What are your hobbies or passions outside of dance?
I like listening to classical music. I also like sports cars, racing cars, cooking, and being with my friends. At Zurich Ballet, there was a group of five other Armenian dancers that I spent a lot of time with.
How has your experience with San Francisco Ballet been so far?
I really like the work and I’m being cast in a lot of ballets. Each time I learn a new piece, I have a chance to study the other dancers in the Company, who are all really good. I’ve also been lucky to have amazing partners like Yuan Yuan [Tan], Vanessa [Zahorian], and Lorena [Feijoo]. They are already familiar with many of the ballets we’re rehearsing, but I’m not, so I need to catch up a little.
What do you think of San Francisco?
It’s beautiful! I love the ocean and the mountains, which remind me of Armenia and Zurich since both places also have mountains and water. I’m very happy to be here.
What are you rehearsing for the 2006 Repertory Season?
I am currently rehearsing Helgi Tomasson’s The Fifth Season and Blue Rose, Afternoon of a Faun, Other Dances, Magrittomania, and Swan Lake. I’ve been busy!