Studio\Class
Boston
- Classical Ballet Program, Pre-Professional Program
Melanie Atkins was born in Reading, England, and trained at the Walnut Hill School for the Arts upon her family’s move to Massachusetts. After completing her education, she joined Fort Worth Dallas Ballet. In 1997, she was invited to join Miami City Ballet, where she rose to the rank of principal dancer.
In 1999, Atkins worked with Maria and Marjorie Tallchief in conjunction with The George Balanchine Foundation Interpreters Archive. The Archive preserves the choreographer's legacy on video.
In 2002, Atkins joined Boston Ballet as a soloist. Her repertory includes Marius Petipa's The Sleeping Beauty (Lilac Fairy, The Countess) and Raymonda, Act III; Mikko Nissinen's The Nutcracker; August Bournonville's La Sylphide; James Kudelka's Cinderella (Stepsister, Twig); Val Caniparoli's Lady of the Camellias (Marguerite); George Balanchine's Prodigal Son, Serenade, Monumentum/Movements, Duo Concertant, and Rubies; Helen Pickett's Etesian; Jorma Elo's Plan to B, Bronislava Nijinska's Les Noces; and Jiri Kylian's Falling Angels.
Following her retirement from the stage in 2009, Atkins was appointed Children’s Ballet Mistress and faculty for Boston Ballet School. She has staged the children’s roles for Mikko Nissinen’s The Nutcracker, George Balanchine’s Coppélia and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Rudolph Nureyev’s Don Quixote. For Boston Ballet’s Next Generation, Atkins was ballet mistress for Jorma Elo’s world premiere of One Concerto in 2010, and assisted Margaret Tracey with the staging of Raymonda Variations in 2012.
