Precious Adams
{{short description|American ballet dancer}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox dancer
| name = Precious Adams
| image = Precious Adams.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = Precious Adams dances for Swans for Relief in May 2020
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth based on age as of date|24|2019|09|27}}
| birth_place = Canton, Michigan, U.S.
| other_names =
| residence =
| education = Moscow State Academy of Choreography
| occupation = Ballet dancer
| years_active =
| home_town =
| spouse =
| current_group = English National Ballet
| former_groups =
| website =
}}
Precious Adams (born 1994 or 1995) is an American ballet dancer who currently dances with the English National Ballet.
Early life
Adams was born and raised in Canton, Michigan.{{cite news| last = Brennan| first = Christopher| title = U.S. Ballerina Faces Discrimination at Bolshoi Academy| newspaper = The Moscow Times| date = November 19, 2013| url = https://themoscowtimes.com/news/us-ballerina-faces-discrimination-at-bolshoi-academy-29736| access-date = June 22, 2020}}{{cite news| last = Loeffler-Gladstone| first = Nicole| title = The Misty Effect: Precious Adams, First Artist, English National Ballet| newspaper = Dance Spirit| publisher = Macfadden Communications Group| date = February 9, 2018| url = https://www.dancespirit.com/precious-adams-2532287053.html| access-date = June 22, 2020}}
Training
Adams began dancing at the age of seven at a competitive jazz dance studio.{{cite web| url = http://sessions.cloudandvictory.com/interview-precious-adams/| title = INTERVIEW: PRECIOUS ADAMS| date = March 14, 2014| website = Cloud & Victory Sessions| access-date = August 8, 2018}} She began studying classical ballet at the age of nine with Sergey Rayevskiy at the Academy of Russian Classical Ballet in Wixom, Michigan. Adams participated in three consecutive summer intensives with American Ballet Theatre, training under Brian Reeder and Franco de Vita, where she twice received the Catherine Zeta Jones Scholarship.{{cite web| url = http://www.interviewenlair.com/precious-adams/| title = Precious Adams| last = Braswell| first = Armando| date = October 27, 2014| website = Interview En L’air | access-date = August 7, 2018}} When she was eleven years old, she went to study at the National Ballet School in Toronto under the direction of Mavis Staines. At the age of fourteen, Adams was selected to study at The Princess Grace Academy of Classical Dance in Monte Carlo under Roland Vogel and Luca Masala.{{cite web| url = http://mobballet.org/index.php/2017/04/11/precious-adams/| title = Precious Adams English National Ballet (2014-present)| website = MoBBallet.org| access-date = August 8, 2018}} In 2011, she was selected to participate in the U.S. State Department Sponsored NSLI-Y Russian language and Bolshoi Ballet Academy summer program. She studied at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow with Natalia Igoravich Reivich and Marina Leonova. In 2012, Adams attended the Ellison Ballet summer intensive under Edward Ellison. In the summer of 2013, she performed in the sixth annual Stars of Russian Ballet Gala in Michigan. In 2014, she was a two-time prize winner at the Prix de Lausanne in Switzerland.{{cite web| url = http://balancing-pointe.com/71-precious-adams-english-national-ballet/| title = 71 ~ Precious Adams, English National Ballet| last = Falker| first = Kimberly| date = November 11, 2014| website = Balancing Pointe| access-date = August 7, 2018}} Adams is also a Young Artist finalist and silver medalist.{{cite news| last = Williams| first = AJ| title = Famed Dancer Precious Adams Returns to Detroit Inspires Young Dancers at Ballet Detroit| newspaper = Michigan Chronicle| url = https://michronicleonline.com/2016/05/20/famed-dancer-precious-adams-returns-to-detroit-inspires-young-dancers-at-ballet-detroit/| access-date = August 7, 2018| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180808171624/https://michronicleonline.com/2016/05/20/famed-dancer-precious-adams-returns-to-detroit-inspires-young-dancers-at-ballet-detroit/| archive-date = August 8, 2018| url-status = dead}}
=Racial discrimination=
While a student at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy, Adams faced discrimination due to her race including being left out of performances, being prevented from taking part in auditions, and being told to "try and rub the black off."{{cite news| last = Faines| first = Ayesha K.| title = 10 Black Ballerinas Other Than Misty Copeland Who Are Also Changing the Face of Ballet| newspaper = Atlanta Black Star| date = July 7, 2015| url = https://atlantablackstar.com/2015/07/07/10-black-ballerinas-other-than-misty-copeland-who-are-also-changing-the-face-of-ballet/2/| access-date = August 7, 2018}}{{cite news| last = Mackrell| first = Judith| title = Everyday racism: how to be a black ballet dancer in a white world| newspaper = The Guardian| date = November 28, 2013| url = https://www.theguardian.com/stage/dance-blog/2013/nov/28/racism-ballet-michaela-deprince-black-dancers| access-date = August 8, 2018}}
Career
Adams is currently a dancer with the English National Ballet.{{cite news| title = Famed Dancer Precious Adams Returns to Detroit Inspires Young Dancers at Ballet Detroit| newspaper = Kolumn Magazine| date = May 21, 2016| url = http://www.kolumnmagazine.com/2016/05/21/famed-dancer-precious-adams-returns-detroit-inspires-young-dancers-ballet-detroit/| access-date = August 7, 2018}} She joined the English National Ballet in 2014{{cite news| last = Perron| first = Wendy| title = Russian Season| newspaper = Dance Magazine| publisher = Macfadden Communications Group| date = May 1, 2015| url = https://www.dancemagazine.com/russian-season-2306962175.html| access-date = August 8, 2018}} and was promoted to First Artist in 2017.{{cite web|url=https://www.ballet.org.uk/people/precious-adams/|title=Precious Adams|website=English National Ballet|access-date=April 16, 2020}} In January 2018, Adams won the Emerging Dancer Competition.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/av/entertainment-arts-50056158/ballet-star-precious-adams-on-balancing-roles-with-being-a-role-model|title=Ballet star Precious Adams on balancing roles with being a role model|date=October 17, 2019|access-date=June 22, 2020}}
In 2017, Adams was invited to take part in the Kenneth MacMillan – A National Celebration at the Royal Opera House, dancing the Calliope Rag in Elite Syncopations with dancers from The Royal Ballet and Northern Ballet. She has also danced the Chosen One in Pina Bausch’s Le Sacre du printemps (The Rite of Spring), Stepsister Edwina in Christopher Wheeldon’s Cinderella and a lead sylph in La Sylphide.{{cite news|last=Winship|first=Lyndsey|date=September 27, 2019|url=https://www.pointemagazine.com/precious-adams-2640655307.html|title=Precious Adams' Journey from Student of the World to Captivating English National Ballet First Artist|work=Pointe|access-date=June 22, 2020}}
In September 2018, Adams announced that she would no longer perform on stage while wearing pink tights, instead wearing brown tights to match her skin tone. She received criticism from within the ballet industry for her decision, but was supported by the director of the English National Ballet, Tamara Rojo.{{Cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/ballerina-precious-adams-pink-tights-skin-tone-english-national-ballet-a8546731.html|title=Ballerina Precious Adams explains why she won't wear the traditional pink tights: 'I'm not colourblind|date=September 20, 2018|last=Barr|first=Sabrina|accessdate=June 22, 2020|work=The Independent}}
Adams was named as one of the BBC 100 Women, a list of 100 inspiring and influential women from around the world, for 2019.
In 2020, Adams participated in Misty Copeland's fundraiser, Swans for Relief, by dancing The Swan, in light of the impacts of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic on the dance community. The fund will go to participating dancers' companies and other related relief funds.{{cite news|url=https://www.dancemagazine.com/ballet-dancer-relief-fund-2645933643.html|title=32 Ballerinas From Around the World Perform "The Dying Swan" for COVID-19 Relief|work=Dance Magazine|date=May 6, 2020|last=Stahl|first=Jennifer|publisher=Macfadden Communications Group|access-date=June 22, 2020}} She was also promoted to junior soloist that year.{{cite web|url=https://www.ballet.org.uk/blog-detail/promotions-departures-companys-2020-2021-season/|title=Promotions and departures for the Company's 2020/2021 Season|website=English National Ballet|date=1 September 2020}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.ballet.org.uk/people/precious-adams/ Precious Adams] - English National Ballet profile
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT95D6leFNI Precious Adams in Prix de Lausanne]
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sacZwIhZ9co Precious Adams and Fernando Carratalá Coloma in Emerging Dancer Award]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Precious}}
Category:Year of birth uncertain
Category:21st-century American ballet dancers
Category:African-American ballerinas
Category:English National Ballet dancers
Category:Dancers from Michigan
Category:Moscow State Academy of Choreography alumni
Category:Prix de Lausanne winners
Category:People from Canton, Michigan