Alum | Amanda McGuigan

The Australian Ballet coryphée Amanda McGuigan

Amanda McGuigan studied classical ballet at The McDonald College and as a student was cast as an extra in The Australian Ballet’s premiere of Graeme Murphy’s Swan Lake.

She was a junior associate of The Australian Ballet School. At the age of 15, she moved to London to study at The Royal Ballet School, graduating in two years. While at the School, she toured Dubai, Spain, Japan and New York and performed in productions with The Royal Ballet.

After graduating, she joined Ballet du Rhin in France. Shortly thereafter, she moved to New York, where she joined American Ballet Theater (2007–10) followed by the Dutch National Ballet (2010–13). With these two companies, she toured extensively and danced in featured roles such as Lady Montague in Romeo and Juliet, a Lead Swan in Swan Lake and the Lilac Fairy in The Sleeping Beauty.

‘For me, the stage is a magical place,’ Amanda has said. ‘You can hear every single thought in your mind. You can feel the vibrations of the other dancers, and foremost, the audience’s energy resonates onto the stage, and as a dancer, that’s my life force.’

She joined The Australian Ballet in 2014 and was promoted to coryphée in 2015. She was also a nominee for the prestigious 2015 Telstra Ballet Dancer Award.

In 2019, Amanda was part of the ensemble that performed for The Enchanted Lunch – a partnership between The Australian Ballet and the acclaimed restaurant Dinner By Heston Blumenthal.