Daily Inspiration: Meet Michael Pappalardo

Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Pappalardo.

Hi Michael, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I was born in Sydney, Australia, and at a young age moved to Brisbane with my family. A friend of mine danced and he encouraged me to come to Jazz and tap classes with him. I quickly become more interested in dance and wanted to explore other styles. Other friends of mine went to ballet class, and I decided to attend.

I loved ballet class and for most of my primary and middle school years, I spent most evenings and weekends at the ballet studio. I was accepted to study with Queensland Dance School of Excellence High School Program and after graduating In 2002 Michael was accepted to the New Zealand School of Dance where he completed his dance training.

In my second year, I was offered a contract with the Royal New Zealand Ballet and performed in works by Val Caniparoli, Jiri Kylian, Frederick Ashton, Stanton Welch, and George Balanchine. After returning to Australia, I worked with Queensland Ballet before launching an independent dance career with Leigh Warren and Dancers, Melbourne Ballet Company, Victoria State Ballet, Opera Victoria, and various other independent projects.

At a fairly young age, I recognized that I much preferred to be on the production and choreographic side of dance and was appointed Artistic Director of Melbourne City Ballet in 2013 and was promoted to Artistic Director/CEO in 2016. during my time with the company, I grew the organization to annually performed over 100 shows across Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. My works were also nominated for numerous dance awards. I also established a comprehensive education program for dancers from 4 years of age to the professional level.

In 2019, my partner and I decided to expand our horizons and move to the US. I joined San Jose Dance Theatre in January 2020 as Artistic Associate. I worked closely with the organization to develop a full-time professional company and establish San Jose Dance Theatre as Silicon Valley’s largest dance organization.

In 2021 I worked with Opera San Jose as a Choreographer for the production of Dido and Aeneas and again in 2022 on West Side Story. In January 2022, I was appointed Artistic Director of Canyon Concert Ballet. During the summer of that year, I Choreographed Aida for Cincinnati Opera and most recently Choreographed Ariodante for Pittsburgh Opera.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Not at all! I think pursuing an artistic endeavor always comes with major challenges. I think things have changed a little now, but being a male dancer in the 90s was challenging, especially growing up in Australia, where men do manly things. Primary school was filled with bullying and very few friends. Ballet and dance were my only happy place; I was also lucky to have a few friends that went to school with me.

After graduating from school, I was lucky to get into a great conservatoire and then into a company. However, the transition to choreographing and directing wasn’t easy, and many people told me ‘no’ or that I couldn’t do what I wanted to do in the beginning. Slowly as people got to know me and saw my work, I was able to secure a great directing job and continued to develop my skills as a leader.

As an Artist, though, there are always considerable challenges and obstacles to overcome. We are forever worried about ticket sales and producing a good show. It often feels like you are on a knife edge, but I genuinely believe that without adversity, you can’t create great things. Daily I am put to the test and through hurdles that need to be overcome, but this is all a part of the job.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I artistically direct Canyon Concert Ballet, putting on 5 productions annually. In addition, I work with various opera companies across the country, choreographing their performances. I have also worked on numerous festivals and will be hosting the Festival of Movement in Fort Collins in June of this year. I specialize in choreography and storytelling and love putting on engaging and inspiring production. I am super proud of all the work I have done directing and choreographing in 4 countries over the last 12 years.

Some highlights of my career include producing Romeo and Juliet, and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz I am currently remounting in Fort Collins, West side story, and Aida. I think what sets me apart is my ability to be diverse and work quickly, but also my understanding of storytelling and ensuring the work I do resonates with audiences.

We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up.
Some of my greatest memories as a child were of my sister and me putting on a weekly ‘performance’ for my family. We would put together costumes and make sets with the furniture. I am not sure these performances were very good or made sense, but we had fun and I am sure it kept us out of our parents hair on the weekend. I didn’t know then but this interest in producing performances would grow into a career.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.michaelpappalardodance.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pappalardo.michael
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michael.pappalardo.129
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-pappalardo-683321140

Image Credits
Machmer Media