Carlos Valcárcel

Madrid, Spain
School Director, The School of Ballet Arizona
 

CARLOS VALCÁRCEL was born in Spain and began his studies at Victor Ullate School in Madrid and Maria de Avila Ballet School under Lola de Avila and Ana Baselga. He danced principal roles at Ballet Victor Ullate and was named Soloist at Balletto di Toscana and later at the Stuttgart Ballet of Germany.
Mr. Valcárcel graduated from Royal Conservatoire of Madrid and received an award of distinction upon graduating from the Royal Academy of Dance teacher’s course. He directed and was principal teacher of his own ballet school in Madrid and served as a guest teacher and choreographer before joining the Showa School for Performing Arts in Tokyo, under the artistic direction of Sir Peter Wright CBE. At the Showa School, he was the Principal Tutor and Lecturer of the Ballet Department.
From 2006 to 2011, Mr. Valcárcel worked with The Washington School of Ballet, teaching, mentoring and choreographing students and dancers from the company. He worked with The Washington Ballet Studio Company, staging pas de deux such as Grand Pas Classique, Don Quixote, Le Corsaire, Coppelia, Diana and Actaeon, and in 2011 his version of The Sleeping Beauty. In 2010, Mr. Valcárcel was appointed Ballet Master of the Trainee Program at The Washington School of Ballet.
Mr. Valcárcel has also been credited with coaching principal ballerinas such as Miss Tamara Rojo of The Royal Ballet.  He has served as a judge of international ballet competitions, and he has choreographed pieces and coached participants for elite competitions.  Mr. Valcárcel’s students have won the Bronze Medal in Senior Men’s Division at Youth America Grand Prix, Bronze Medal in Senior Women’s Division at USA International Ballet Competition, and, at the World Ballet Competition in Orlando, the Gold Medal in Senior Men’s and Bronze Medal in Senior Women’s Divisions.
His pieces Just a Song and Pas de Passion won first prizes at the Youth America Grand Prix in 2008 and 2009, respectively, and he was also awarded the “Outstanding Young Choreographer Award” in 2009. His choreography Dusk Fields won the first prize at the Youth American Grand Prix finals 2011 in New York.
Since joining Ballet Arizona in 2011 as Director of its School, Mr. Valcárcel created and expanded the School’s summer intensive program and its Pre-Professional Program. He is proud to have increased the performances opportunities for the School at Ballet Arizona’s Dorrance Theater and throughout the Valley. Under his leadership, the School has enjoyed increased exposure on television and other media, including coverage on the Univision educational piece “Tu Me Inspiras” and the community program “Enlace”. He is also extremely proud that a number of School alumni have recently been placed in professional dance companies, including Ballet Arizona. Mr. Valcárcel is enthusiastically committed to preparing the next generation of young professional dancers for their careers, and he is excited about expanding the recreational dance program and the community outreach programs of Ballet Arizona.