Tamara King

About Tamara

Tamara King became Principal of the Newton Studio and the Summer Dance Program Newton in 2004. During her tenure, Newton has become the hub of the Classical Ballet Program, which offers a carefully constructed ten-level curriculum. King has also guided the studio toward establishing strong ties with the city of Newton, becoming an executive leader in the Newton Cultural Alliance, as well as launching a partnership with Lasell College where she resides on the Advisory Board of the Humanities Department.

King began her training with Suzanne Johnston, Soili Arvola, and Leo Ahonen. Her association with Boston Ballet School began in 1981, when she studied with Violette Verdy, Helgi Tomasson, and Ivan Nagy as a Summer Dance Program scholarship recipient.

She launched her professional career later that year by joining Louisville Ballet, and then accepting the invitation of Bruce Marks to become a member of Ballet West in Salt Lake City, UT. With Ballet West, she danced a variety of principal, soloist, and corps roles in such classics as The Sleeping Beauty, Giselle, and The Nutcracker. She also performed in Ashton’s The Dream and in Balanchine repertory including Symphony in C, Bugaku, and Allegro Brillante. From 1987 until her retirement in 1993, she again danced for Mr. Marks, this time as a member of Boston Ballet. She appeared in the celebrated “glasnost” Swan Lake, staged by Konstantin Sergeyev and Natalya Dudinskaya, and added other Balanchine ballets, including The Four Temperaments and Concert Barocco, to her repertoire.

King was invited to join the faculty and direct the Summer Dance Workshop at Walnut Hill School for the Arts in 1994. Under former BBS Director Rachel Moore, she returned to Boston Ballet School in 2001 to teach on a full-time basis and, in 2002, to lead the Summer Dance Program. In addition to her teaching and leadership roles, King has regularly choreographed for the annual Spring Showcase, creating the productions Alice in Wonderland; Never, Neverland: The Adventures of Peter and Wendy; and Seasons.

King has guest taught for the esteemed American Ballet Theatre JKO School, as well as the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and Harvard University. In addition, King also serves as a participating juror for the prestigious Japan Grand Prix Competition in Tokyo, Japan.