Janessa Touchet, a native of New Orleans, Louisiana, is currently a Senior Soloist with Cincinnati Ballet but has been promoted to Pricipal Dancer for the 2006-2007 season. Her training includes the Giacobbe Academy of Dance, Hartford Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, and Pacific Northwest Ballet. From 1989 to 2000, Janessa danced with the Delta Festival Ballet under the direction of Joseph Giacobbe. After she performed there as a principal in such ballets as Snow White, Aladdin, Hanzel and Gretel, and Red Shoes, Ms. Touchet returned as a guest artist to perform the roles of Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker, Kitri in Don Quixote, Juliet in Romeo and Juiiet, and Aurora in Sleeping Beauty. In 2000, she won First Place in the New Orleans Overture to the Cultural Season and in the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts. Ms. Touchet was also a semi-finalist in the 2002 International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi. During her career at Cincinnati Ballet, she has enjoyed dancing the roles of Marie in The Nutcra╛cker, Rubies pas de deux in Jewels, Odette/Odile in Swan Lake, and the title role in Cinderella.
During the summer of 2005, Ms. Touchet was chosen by Victoria Morgan to perform as a soloist with Opera Theatre of St. Louis in Glorianna. Also in 2005, she performed A Midsummer's Nights Dream pas de deux by Victoria Morgan at the International Ballet Festival of Miami. She credits her family for inspiring, encouraging and supporting her career. Ms. Touchet is delighted to share her passion for dance with Cincinnati Ballet.
