Biography

Choreographer, Crepuscular

Born in Madrid, Vanesa Garcia-Ribala Montoya received her dance diploma from Madrid Royal Conservatory at 17. She has danced with Compañía Nacional de Danza 2, Le Ballet de l'Opéra national du Rhin and is currently with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal where she became the company’s first Black Principal Dancer.

In addition to dancing professionally, Vanesa is a choreographer and teacher, often collaborating with École supérieure de ballet du Québec, among other Montréal schools, and has presented her works for Les Grands Ballets Canadiens on programmes such as Parlami d’Amore, Luna and Echoes.

Vanesa choreographs for fundraisers, charities, festivals and dance competitions across Canada, Europe and Asia. Additionally, she has collaborated with artists such as Martha Wainwright, Raine Maida, Chantal Kreviazuk, Ravid Kahalani from Yemen Blues, Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Festival Stella Musica, Festival Orchestre de Chambre de Montréal, Danse à la Carte and Fall For Dance North and Orchestre Métropolitain, as part of the Festival des Arts de Saint-Sauveur.

Vanesa participates in different dance films and video projects. The Challenging Dance by Alexandre Paskanoi is a short dance documentary about her career that was featured at Festival du Film sur l’Art 2020.

Her latest choreographic creations include Crepuscular for The National Ballet of Canada, which premiered in 2021, and From the Sun to the Moon scheduled to premiere at Les Grands Ballets Canadiens in April 2022