Bernice Coppieters
Belgian, born in Dendermonde, Belgium on 16th November 1970
TRAINING
1980 Bernice Coppieters studied dance at the Antwerp Institute of Ballet
1988 She joined the Juilliard School of New York winning the Prix de Lausanne in the same year.
THE CHOREOGRAPHER
1988 She entered the Royal Ballet of Flanders where she was made soloist. From this period, she has particularly fond memories of her performance of the Tchaikovsky/Pas de deux by Balanchine.
1991-2014 She joined the Ballets de Monte-Carlo directed by Jean-Christophe Maillot. The meeting between the two artists marked the start of an exceptional partnership that has lasted for over 20 years. Bernice Coppieters has inspired Jean-Christophe Maillot to create his most memorable characters in ballets that have built the company’s reputation all over the world: Juliet in Romeo and Juliet (she has also played Lady Capulet) / the Fairy Godmother and Wicked Stepmother Cinderella/ Meier in the “Drosselmeier” couple in Casse-Noisette Circus / Beauty in La Belle / Titania in Le Songe / Death in Faust / Princess Scheherazade in Scheherazade / The mother of the Black Swan in LAC.
She has also performed major roles in the ballets Concert d’Anges, Dov’è la Luna, Duo d’Anges, Home, Sweet Home, Thème et Quatre Variations, Ubuhuha, Vers un Pays Sage, In Volo, l’île, Opus 40, Œil pour Œil, Entrelacs, D’une Rive à l’Autre, Atro Canto I et II Fauves (with Gil Roman), Men’s Dance for Women, Daphnis et Chloé, Choré, Casse-Noisette Compagnie, Switch (with Diana Vishneva).
Bernice Coppieters has also danced the lead roles in the repertoire of the Ballets Russes, created in the Principality of Monaco 100 years ago (Scheherazade, Les Sylphides, The Firebird, Petrouchka, L’Après-midi d’un Faune) as well as the repertoire of George Balanchine (Agon, The Four Temperaments, The Prodigal Son, La Valse, Serenade, Violin Concerto, Who Cares ?, Theme and Variations).
She has also worked with many modern choreographers whose pieces have become part of the repertoire of the Ballets de Monte-Carlo, or who, as guest choreographers, have created roles for her: Duende by Nacho Duato, In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated, Approximate Sonata, The Vile Parody of Address and The Second Detail by William Forsythe, Watching Waters by Renato Zanella, Return to a Strange land, Bella Figura, Sechs Tänze, No more play and Silent cries by Jiri Kylian, and pieces by Karole Armitage, Lucinda Childs (The Chairman Dances), Twyla Tharp, Kevin O’Day, Angelin Preljocaj, Uwe Sholz, Jacopo Godani, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui (In Memoriam, Mea Culpa), Johan Inger, Alonzo King, Marco Goecke (solo created for her: Tué), and Maurice Béjart who gave her the honour of dancing his Boléro.
In recent years, she has worked for Jean-Christophe Maillot on several of his major productions for large companies such as the Royal Swedish Ballet, the Essen Ballet, the Vienna State Opera Ballet, the Korea National Ballet, the Pacific Northwest Ballet, the National Theatre of Prague, the Atlanta Ballet Company.
ARTISTIC COLLABORATIONS
Ernest Pignon-Ernest
Bernice Coppieters has worked in partnership with the artist for the last 12 years. In the 2000s, he told her about his desire to create a project around 7 mystical women. The dancer would become his model for a decade. In July 2008, the artist took over the Chapel of Saint Charles d’Avignon (then the Grimaldi Forum the following year) to exhibit the results of this collaboration. The exhibition was the subject of a book, Extases, Gallimard, 2008.
Helmut Newton
Bernice Coppieters has worked with the photographer on many occasions. She appears in the famous SUMO album published by Taschen.
Ange Leccia
In 2006, the visual artist created Bernice, a film which set out a portrait of the dancer and would be broadcast on many channels.
AWARDS AND DISTINCTIONS
1988 Prix de Lausanne
1995 Appointed Danseuse Etoile of the Ballets de Monte-Carlo by H.R.H. the Princess of Hanover 2002 Awarded the Officier de l’Ordre du Mérite Culturel of the Principality of Monaco
2003 Received the Positano “Léonide Massine” prize
2005 Voted “Star of the Year” by the Jury of the Danza & Danza Prize presided over by Mario Pasi 2011 Awarded the Benois de la Danse 2011 by Yuri Grigorovitch.
Update April 2015