Kate Walsh, of Longboat Key, Fla., has danced with The Sarasota Ballet for 19 seasons and currently holds the titles of Principal dancer and Assistant Ballet Mistress.

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Ms. Walsh started training with The Sarasota Ballet School in 1995 under the training of Pavel Fomin, Diane Partington, Alexei Dovgopolyi, Sasha Yapparov, as well as Isabel and Javier Dubrocq. She also danced with the Florida West Youth Ballet, under the Artistic Direction of Robert de Warren and performed various children's roles such as Marie in Miami City Ballet's The Nutcracker.

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Ms. Walsh trained at prestigious summer programs, including Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, School of American Ballet, American Ballet Theatre in New York City, and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. She began her professional career as an Apprentice with The Sarasota Ballet in 1997, performing in Robert De Warren's The Nutcracker, Cinderella, Eva Peron, Madame Butterfly, and Don Quixote before leaving to attend the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School in 1999 to further her dance education.

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She continued her training in the pre-professional graduate program at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre for two more years, performing with the company in ballets such as Balanchine's The Nutcracker and Serenade; Ben Stevenson's Dracula and Cleopatra; Kent Stowell's Carmina Burana, as well as in Giselle and Coppelia staged by Terrence S. Orr.

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She returned to The Sarasota Ballet in 2002. She was promoted to soloist in 2006, then to Principal in 2009. Ms. Walsh has performed lead and featured roles in ballets choreographed by Sir Frederick Ashton, George Balanchine, Antony Tudor, Paul Taylor, Sir Kenneth MacMillan, Hans Van Manen, Christopher Wheeldon, Twyla Tharp, Matthew Bourne, Jerome Robbins, and Martha Graham. Roles were created on her by Matthew Hart, Will Tuckett, Dominic Walsh, and Ricardo Graziano. 

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She has toured to The Kennedy Center with The Sarasota Ballet and The City Center and The Joyce Theatre in New York City. She also toured to Marrakech, Morocco, for the 2005 FIFA Congress performance, and performed throughout Germany and Austria for the 2006 Best of Musical tour. Ms. Walsh also appeared in Susan Stroman's Contact in 2009 in conjunction with the Asolo Repertory Theatre. Most recently, Ms. Walsh guest performed in Alessandra Ferri: Art of the Pas de Deux in a gala with international ballet stars at Michigan Opera Theatre.

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Ms. Walsh has choreographed four works for The Sarasota Ballet and most recently choreographed a full-length ballet titled, Stella Natalis, in collaboration with the pre-professional dancers of the Sarasota Ballet Studio Company, students of the Margaret Barbieri Conservatory of Dance, the Sarasota Orchestra, and the Key Chorale.

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Ms. Walsh has also been an instructor with the Sarasota Ballet School and Dance, The Next Generation, for 12 years. She specializes in youth pre-professional levels, and professional and adult classes, including ballet technique, pointe, variations, and dance conditioning. She has choreographed for the Sarasota Ballet School summer workshops and end-of-the-year performances, including co-directing and producing two full-length productions.

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She has coached multiple award-winning students for Youth America Grand Prix, and choreographed works for their contemporary solos. She has also judged for the 2015 World Ballet Competition in Orlando, as well as taught a master class for the competitors.

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Ms. Walsh has taught at Colorado Ballet Society’s Summer Ballet Intensive and Audition Master Classes in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2021. She has also been a guest artist as the Sugar Plum Fairy in Colorado Ballet Society’s production of A Colorado Nutcracker in 2017 and 2018.

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In 2017, Ms. Walsh earned her training certificate through Mark Morris Dance Group to teach dance to people with Parkinson's Disease. In 2019, she collaborated with Neuro Challenge Foundation and The Sarasota Ballet to teach dance classes for the Parkinson’s community in a program called Joyful Movement. 

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In 2018, she was given the title of Assistant Ballet Mistress of Sarasota Ballet by Director, Iain Webb. In 2019, Ms. Walsh was nominated for Young Professional of the Year by the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, and was Co-chair for the Sarasota Ballet’s 2020 Gala. Ms. Walsh is an ABT® Certified Teacher, who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 3 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum.

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As Artistic Director of the Colorado Ballet Society, Ms. Walsh will be responsible for the Artistic direction of the school syllabus and all performances with the final decision of student casting for performances and student’s level advancement with advisory from school faculty. She will also arrange guest teachers and choreographers throughout the year and summer, as well as guest artists for performances. 

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As owner of The Ballerina Boutique, Ms. Walsh will oversee the day-to-day operations, assisting dancers with professional pointe shoe fittings, and meeting all their dancewear needs. She plans to continue offering the best service and dancewear products in the Front Range region.