Kang Sue-jin is a South Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

n ballerina

Ballerina

A ballerina is a title used to describe a principal female professional ballet dancer in a large company; the male equivalent to this title is danseur or ballerino...

. She is a principal dancer

Principal dancer

A principal dancer is a dancer at the highest rank within a professional dance company, particularly a ballet company....

 at Stuttgart Ballet

Stuttgart Ballet

Stuttgart Ballet was the first major German ballet company. It rose to fame in the 1960s under Artistic Director John Cranko. The company, which is renowned for presentations of full-length narrative ballets including Romeo and Juliet, Eugene Onegin, The Taming of the Shrew, John Neumeier's Die...

.

Early life

Kang Soo-jin was born in Seoul

Seoul

Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...

, South Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

. After initial ballet lessons in Korea, she went to Marika Besobrazova at the Académie de Danse Classique in Monte Carlo. In 1985, she won the Prix de Lausanne

Prix de Lausanne

The Prix de Lausanne is an International dance competition held annually in Lausanne, Switzerland. The competition is for young dancers seeking to pursue a professional career in classical ballet, and many former prize winners of the competition are now leading stars with major ballet companies...

. In 1986, she became a member of the Stuttgart Ballet, where she was appointed Soloist in 1994 and Principal Dancer in 1997.

Career

• Studied at Sun Hwa Arts Middle School
  Sun Hwa Arts School
  Sun Hwa Arts School is a private coeducational college preparatory arts academy located in Seoul, South Korea. Originally founded as the Little Angels Art School in 1973 by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon , the Sun Hwa Arts School was launched in 1974 and has been supported by the Sun Hwa Educational...
  
   from 1979, majored in Korean Traditional Dance
  Korean dance
  Dance in Korea began with shamanistic early rituals five thousand years ago and now ranges from folk dance to newly created and adapted contemporary dance.-Overview:Korean traditional dance originated in ancient shamanistic rituals thousands of years ago...
  
  
• Studied at Sun Hwa Arts High School
  Sun Hwa Arts School
  Sun Hwa Arts School is a private coeducational college preparatory arts academy located in Seoul, South Korea. Originally founded as the Little Angels Art School in 1973 by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon , the Sun Hwa Arts School was launched in 1974 and has been supported by the Sun Hwa Educational...
  
   from 1982
• Studied at Académie de Danse Classique in Monte Carlo from 1982
• Joined Stuttgart Ballet in 1986 - The first and youngest Asian
  Asian people
  Asian people or Asiatic people is a term with multiple meanings that refers to people who descend from a portion of Asia's population.- Central Asia :...
  
   to join the Stuttgart Ballet
• Soloist in Stuttgart Ballet 1994
• Debut in USA, Onegin and Romeo and Juliet
• Prima ballerina assoluta with Stuttgart Ballet from 1997
• Permanent member with Stuttgart Ballet from 2002

Featured Performances

• 2008 Appeared at Lotte Dept. Store CF.
• 2006 Korean Nat'l Ballet, 2006 New Year's Gala
• 2004 Stuttgart Ballet's featured performance Onegin
• 2002 Stuttgart Ballet's Die Kameliendame
• 1999 Gala performance - Korea's best Ballerina
• 1998 Die Kameliendame
• 1997 Hunchback of Notre Dame
• 1996 Giselle
• 1994 Sleeping Beauty
• 1993 Magic Flute
• 1992 Romeo and Juliet
• 1992 Mata Hari

Honours and awards

• Won the Prix de Lausanne
  Prix de Lausanne
  The Prix de Lausanne is an International dance competition held annually in Lausanne, Switzerland. The competition is for young dancers seeking to pursue a professional career in classical ballet, and many former prize winners of the competition are now leading stars with major ballet companies...
  
   in 1985
• Recipient of the Korean Young Artist Award, 1998
• Recipient of the Best Female Ballerina Award at the Prix Benois de la Danse
  Prix Benois de la Danse
  The Benois de la Danse is one of the most prestigious ballet competition. Founded by the International Dance Association in Moscow in 1991, it takes place each year on or around April 29 and is jury-based in its judging...
  
  , 1999
• National Hwa-Gwan Order of Cultural Merit
  Order of Cultural Merit (Korea)
  The Order of Cultural Merit is one of the Republic of Korea's Orders of Merit. It is awarded to those who have rendered outstanding meritorious services in the interest of improving the national welfare.-Classes of Cultural Merit:...
  
   by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (South Korea), 1999
• Ho-Am Prize in the Arts
  Ho-Am Prize in the Arts
  The Ho-Am Prize is a Korean annual award awarded to "those who have made outstanding contributions to the development of science and culture and enhancement of the welfare of mankind," often referred to as the Korean equivalent of the Nobel Prize....
  
  , 2001
• Recipient of the German title “Kammertänzerin” (German: Royal Court Dancer), 2007
• Recipient of the John Cranko Award, 2007

External links

• Kang Sue-Jin, Stuttgart Ballet Interview at CriticalDance.com