About Pointe Joint
My name is Stephanie Hutchison, Welcome to the Pointe Joint!
I wanted to create a space to explore all things related to the pointe shoe. A place where I could examine and test new trends in the ballet world particularly related to pointe shoes but, not only pointe shoes. After all, it’s not possible to separate and delve into pointe shoes without also traversing the world of ballet and ballet dancers!
As a professional ballet dancer, my fascination with pointe shoes goes back many, many years. As the Pointe Shoe Manager at The National Ballet of Canada, I'm asked many questions about pointe shoes; How are they made? How long do they last? Who was the first ballerina to go on pointe? What is the difference between the brands? Believe me the list goes on!
I hope you’ll join me on this journey as I endeavour to answer these questions, research and share with you my perspectives at the Pointe Joint.
Stephanie Hutchison
The Pointe Joint
Principal Character Artist/Pointe Shoe Manager/ Assistant Ballet Master
The National Ballet of Canada
A little more about me
Born in Kitchener, Ontario, I received my training at Canada’s National Ballet School. I danced with Ottawa Ballet and Ballet British Columbia before joining The National Ballet of Canada’s Corps de Ballet in 1997. I was promoted to Second Soloist in 2000, First Soloist in 2003 and became a Principal Character Artist in 2015.
Some of my favorite classical ballet roles have been; The Lilac Fairy, Diamonds and Carabosse in The Sleeping Beauty, Snow Queen and Arabian in The Nutcracker, Queen of the Wilis in Giselle, Lady Capulet in Romeo and Juliet, Mercedes in Don Quixote, and the Hungarian Princess in Swan Lake.
Some other favored story ballets also include the roles of the Stepsister and Fairy Godmother in Cinderella, Queen of Hearts in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and the School Mistress in Pinocchio. My contemporary repertoire includes featured roles in George Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments, Jewels and Serenade, William Forsyth’s In the Middle Somewhat Elevated and The Second Detail, Crystal Pite’s Emergence, James Kudelka’s The Four Seasons and The Man in Black, Jerome Robbins’ West Side Story Suite and John Neumier’s Nijinsky and The Seagull.
I have enjoyed touring extensively in my career throughout Canada, The United States and in incredible cities such as London, Tokyo, Paris, Moscow, St. Petersburg and Hamburg. In 2008, I danced in A Delicate Battle at San Francisco Ballet’s 75th Anniversary Gala and performed in the 75th anniversary of The Royal Ballet in London in 2006, in the world premiere of Matjash Mrozewski’s C.V.
I feel truly blessed to have enjoyed many wonderful years of dancing and working with so many incredible Artists along the way.
Quotes
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
“Stephanie Hutchison as the Queen of Hearts was hilarious. Her spoof of the Rose Adagio was broad enough to elicit belly laughs even from those who never saw Sleeping Beauty.”
Dance Magazine
The Sleeping Beauty
“Stephanie Hutchison’s regal Lilac Fairy… glided seamlessly along the stage.”
DanceView
The Four Seasons
“as Autumn, Stephanie Hutchison gives us a highly feminine season rich and ripe”
Toronto Sun
Romeo and Juliet
“As Lady Capulet, Stephanie Hutchison follows a long line of dramatic ballerinas who have found just the right note of nobility overlying a fragile interior.”
The Globe and Mail