Laura Hidalgo- The Principal Dancer who achieved the ballet dream

When Laura Hidalgo first began her ballet training in Argentina, she only considered it a hobby.

“It was just my fun thing to do. Early on I loved the discipline, and I loved the challenge of perfecting something every day, and making it effortless,” she recalls.

This hobby soon turned into full time commitment, when at the age of 13, Laura was offered a scholarship to train at the L’Institute Superieur d’Art in France. Here, she realised that she was destined to be a ballerina, and she never looked back.

With a career that spanned nearly a decade, Laura has performed for some of the most well-known ballet companies across the globe. Her professional career began in 2002 with The American Ballet Theatre, before she relocated to Europe and danced for The National Ballet and Staatstheater Nürnberg. From the very start of her career, Laura was determined to broaden her dance horizons. 

“I always wanted to be a principal dancer, that was always my goal. But along the way I realised that wasn’t my only purpose. I wanted to learn every style and have as many experiences as I could. So, I kept moving to companies with different styles to absorb knowledge, and work with all the people that I had always wanted to work with,” she says.

In 2010, Laura joined The Royal Ballet of Flanders, where after only one month with the company, she was casted in her first Principal role.

“A director with the Stuttgart ballet came to cast Oneguin, which is one of the most amazing ballets…He casted me in 4th cast, and then that first casting turned to 2^nd, and then he skipped a few people and then I got my show,” she recalls.

“You never forget your first Principal role.”