Marcelino Sambé

Sambé was born on International Dance Day 1994 to a Guinean father and Portuguese mother in an immigrant community on the outskirts of Lisbon. His father worked in construction. Sambé attended African dance classes at a local community centre despite being the only boy in the troupe. When he was 8, the community centre's psychologist encouraged Sambé to audition for National Conservatory of Lisbon to train ballet, even though he did not know what ballet was. He ended up improvising an African dance routine for the panel, and was accepted to the Conservatory. Soon, he started training in the Vaganova method. Sambé's father died shortly afterwards. Sambé's mother could not take care of both Sambé and his sister, so he was fostered by a family whose daughter was also training at the Conservatory, and later became a dancer at the National Ballet of Portugal.

After winning a scholarship at the Prix de Lausanne, he moved to The Royal Ballet School in London at age 16.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2019/oct/05/marcelino-sambe-royal-ballet-principal-interview-ballet-should-not-just-be-for-elite-kids|title=Marcelino Sambé: 'Ballet should not be just for elite kids'|work=The Guardian|date=5 September 2019}}{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/culture/theatre-dance/article/marcelino-sambe-interview-the-royal-ballet-star-on-training-in-lockdown-overcoming-hardship-and-helping-kids-to-dance-xb3jjjbq8|title=Marcelino Sambé interview: the Royal Ballet star on training in lockdown, overcoming hardship and helping kids to dance|work=The Times|date=26 April 2020}}{{cite news|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/go/london/arts/marcelino-sambe-interview-royal-ballet-principal-dancer-a4234116.html|title=Marcelino Sambé interview: 'I've got a life outside ballet — you can't be a fully rounded artist if you are halfway living'|work=Evening Standard|date=11 September 2019}}{{cite news|url=https://danceinternational.org/conversation-royal-ballet-first-soloist-marcelino-sambe-chats-gerard-davis/|title=In Conversation: Royal Ballet first soloist Marcelino Sambé chats with Gerard Davis|work=Dance International|date=16 February 2018}}

Sambé joined The Royal Ballet in 2012, a year ahead of his scheduled graduation. He was made First Artist in 2014, Soloist in 2015 and First Soloist in 2017.{{cite web|url=http://www.roh.org.uk/people/marcelino-sambe|title=Marcelino Sambé|work=Royal Opera House|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200220052650/http://www.roh.org.uk/people/marcelino-sambe|archive-date=20 February 2020}}

In 2019, he was promoted to Principal Dancer, making him the second black male dancer, after Carlos Acosta, to reach this rank in the company. His promotion came after his debuts as Basilio in Don Quixote, for which he was coached by Acosta, and Romeo in Romeo and Juliet.{{cite web|url=https://www.roh.org.uk/news/the-royal-ballets-marcelino-sambe-promoted-to-principal-dancer|title=The Royal Ballet's Marcelino Sambé promoted to Principal dancer|work=Royal Opera House|date=7 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191010093711/https://www.roh.org.uk/news/the-royal-ballets-marcelino-sambe-promoted-to-principal-dancer|archive-date=10 October 2019}} Sambé' has also originated roles in works by choreographers such as Crystal Pite, Hofesh Shechter and Cathy Marston.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2020/feb/23/the-cellist-cathy-marston-review-du-pre-royal-ballet-message-in-a-bottle-kate-prince-sting|title=The week in dance: The Cellist/Dances at a Gathering; Message in a Bottle – review|work=The Guardian|date=23 February 2020}} His frequent partners on stage include Francesca Hayward, Yasmine Naghdi and Anna Rose O'Sullivan. As a choreographer himself, Sambé has choreographed for The Royal Ballet School's annual matinee and The Royal Ballet’s Draft Works.

In 2020, he was featured in the BBC documentary, Men at the Barre. That year, his debut as Prince Siegfried in Swan Lake was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. In 2022 he created the lead role of Pedro in Christopher Wheeldon's full-length ballet Like Water for Chocolate.{{Cite web |title=Like Water for Chocolate |url=https://www.abt.org/ballet/like-water-for-chocolate/ |access-date=2024-07-19 |website=American Ballet Theatre}} A video is available at Royal Ballet and Opera Stream.[https://www.rbo.org.uk/tickets-and-events/like-water-for-chocolate-2022-digital Like Water for Chocolate (2022)], Royal Ballet & Opera Stream.

Sambé performed at the Coronation Concert in 2023, to mark the coronation of Charles III and Camilla.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/mediacentre/bbcstudios/2023/details-of-staging-released-ahead-of-coronation-concert|title=Details of staging released ahead of Coronation Concert|publisher=BBC|date=1 May 2023|accessdate=7 May 2023}}{{cite web |title=The Royal Opera House celebrates the Coronation of King Charles III |url=https://www.roh.org.uk/news/the-royal-opera-house-celebrates-the-coronation |website=Royal Opera House |access-date=9 May 2023 |date=5 May 2023}}

Sambé's repertoire with The Royal Ballet includes:

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• Franz in Coppélia
• Colas in La Fille mal gardée
• Oberon in The Dream
• Hans-Peter/Nutcracker in The Nutcracker
• Romeo and Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet
• Brother Clown in The Winter’s Tale
• Lescaut and Beggar Chief in Manon
• Bratfisch and Lead Hungarian Officer in Mayerling
• Bronze Idol in La Bayadère
• Basilio in Don Quixote
• Officer in Anastasia
• Bluebird and Florestan in The Sleeping Beauty
• Pas de trois in Swan Lake
• Lead couple pas de six in Giselle
• Footman/Frog in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
• Gypsy Boy in The Two Pigeons
• Blue Boy in Les Patineurs
• Jewels
• Aeternum
• Within the Golden Hour
• Elite Syncopations
• Tchaikovsky pas de deux
• Symphony in C
• Infra
• Concerto
• Medusa

• Flight Pattern
• Ceremony of Innocence
• Connectome
• Untouchable
• Woolf Works
• Corybantic Games{{cite news|url=https://dancetabs.com/2018/03/royal-ballet-bernstein-centenary-yugen-the-age-of-anxiety-corybantic-games-london/|title=Royal Ballet – Bernstein Centenary: Yugen, The Age of Anxiety, Corybantic Games – London|website=DanceTabs|last=Parry|first=Jann|date=18 March 2018}}
• The Instrument in The Cellist
• Pedro Múzquiz in Like Water for Chocolate{{cite web |title=Like Water for Chocolate |url=https://www.abt.org/ballet/like-water-for-chocolate/ |website=American Ballet Theatre |access-date=25 June 2024}}

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Awards:

• 2008: Moscow International Ballet Competition - silver prize
• 2009: Youth America Grand Prix - first prize
• 2010: USA International Ballet Competition - gold medal and special award
• 2011: Ursula Morton Choreographic Awards - second prize
• 2012: Youth Dance England - UK’s emerging choreographers
• 2017: Critics' Circle National Dance Awards - Outstanding Male Classical Performance
• 2019: Outstanding Male Classical Performance - Best Male Dancer
• 2023: Outstanding Male Classical Performance

Sambé is openly gay. He and his partner live in North London.

Sambé took up photography when he was recovering from an injury, and has an Instagram account dedicated to his photographs of other Royal Ballet dancers.

{{Reflist}}

• [http://www.roh.org.uk/people/marcelino-sambe Royal Ballet biography]
• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrNfZ6pCn9M Sambé in Flight Pattern]

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Category:1994 births

Category:Portuguese male ballet dancers

Category:People educated at the Royal Ballet School

Category:Living people

Category:People from Lisbon

Category:Principal dancers of The Royal Ballet

Category:Portuguese people of Guinean descent

Category:Portuguese expatriates in England

Category:21st-century ballet dancers

Category:Gay dancers

Category:Portuguese gay men

Category:Portuguese LGBTQ entertainers

Category:LGBTQ people of African descent