Hope Muir

A leader of bold ambition, Hope Muir is driven by constant curiosity, a desire to cultivate distinctive voices, build meaningful relationships and partnerships and move ballet forward. An acclaimed dancer, teacher and director whose career bridges classical and contemporary dance across two continents, Hope brings to her leadership a deep understanding of the art form from the studio to the stage.

Born in Toronto, Hope trained in the UK as part of the first intake of English National Ballet School. Upon graduation, she joined English National Ballet, where she performed a vast range of classical and contemporary repertoire, dancing in ballets by choreographers including Ronald Hynd, George Balanchine, Christopher Bruce, Paul Taylor, August Bournonville and Natalia Makarova. She subsequently joined Rambert Dance Company, where she performed for a decade under the artistic direction of Christopher Bruce CBE. In 2004, she joined Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, where she continued to expand her experience as a performer and teacher until her retirement from the stage.

Following her performance career, Hope moved into teaching, coaching and artistic leadership. She has worked with numerous choreographers in the development and staging of their work and assisted Crystal Pite in the creation of Emergence for The National Ballet of Canada. 

Hope joined Scottish Ballet in 2009 and eventually became Assistant Artistic Director under Christopher Hampson CBE. In 2017, she was appointed Artistic Director of Charlotte Ballet, where she commissioned numerous works and introduced a broad range of choreographic voices to the US through world and US premieres spanning both the classical and contemporary genre. 

In 2022, Hope was named Joan and Jerry Lozinski Artistic Director of The National Ballet of Canada. Since her appointment, she has strengthened the company’s artistic relationships and international partnerships while championing both established and emerging voices. She appointed David Dawson as Resident Choreographer and has collaborated with artists including Alonzo King, Christopher Wheeldon OBE, Sir Wayne McGregor, Carlos Acosta CBE and Sol León and Paul Lightfoot. At the same time, she has placed a strong emphasis on Canadian artists and choreographers, revitalizing the role of Choreographic Associate and appointing Ethan Colangelo, while continuing collaborations with artists including Crystal Pite, Emma Portner, William Yong and most recently, Alyssa Martin.

As The National Ballet of Canada enters its 75th anniversary season, Hope continues to look both to the company’s rich history and its future. Her programming reflects an ambition to honour the works and artists that have shaped the company while creating space for different perspectives, artistic partnerships and contemporary storytelling. The anniversary season includes two major full-evening commissions, David Dawson’s The Beginning of Forever which also includes a newly commissioned score by Peter Gregson and Val Caniparoli’s Dr. Coppélius, reflecting the breadth of Hope’s vision for the company and its next chapter.