Nikisha Fogo

Nikisha Fogo (born 1995) is a Swedish ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer with the San Francisco Ballet and previously a principal at the Vienna State Ballet.

Early life Nikisha Fogo was born in Stockholm. Her mother is Swedish, while her father was born in England to Jamaican parents. Her parents owned the first hip-hop dance school in Sweden, and she dabbled in different dance styles such as hip-hop, jazz, and tap. At age 10, she entered the Royal Swedish Ballet School. The following year, she auditioned for Talang 2007.

In 2011, shortly after she turned 16, Fogo competed at the Prix de Lausanne; though she did not make it into the finals or win any prize, she was offered several scholarships. She also met Gailene Stock, the director of The Royal Ballet School in London, who invited her to train in London. Fogo attended the school's second and third years of the Upper School, with a scholarship provided by Anglo-Swedish Society. She graduated in 2013.

Career Fogo joined the Vienna State Ballet in 2013. She was promoted to demi-soloist in 2015 and soloist the following year. As a soloist, she danced the principal role in Theme and Variations. In 2018, she was chosen to dance the title role in artistic director Manuel Legris's reconstruction of Sylvia, which was also Fogo's first full-length principal role. After the performance, Legris promoted Fogo to the rank of principal, the highest rank of the company. She went on to dance principal roles in other productions. Fogo said one of her reasons for leaving the Vienna State Ballet was Legris' departure from the company. She made her San Francisco Ballet debut at the virtual gala in January 2021 with Julian MacKay, also a new principal, and danced the White Swan Pas de Deux from Swan Lake and the Don Quixote Pas de Deux.

On colorism in ballet, Fogo, who identifies as mixed race/black, has called for better representation of black dancers, though she has said, "It's tricky: I feel really happy that I can represent for the brown ballerinas, but then I look at my skin and I'm the most pale person ever!"

A Midsummer Night’s Dream - George Balanchine (Titania, Hippolyta) Mere Mortals - Aszure Barton (Pandora) Emergence - Val Caniparoli (originated role) Blake Works I - William Forsythe Broken Wings - Annabelle Lopez Ochoa (Frida) Giselle - Helgi Tómasson (Myrtha) The Nutcracker - Tómasson (Sugar Plum Fairy, Grand Pas de deux) Romeo & Juliet - Tómasson (Juliet) Swan Lake - Tómasson (Odette/Odile) Diana and Acteon pas de deux - after Agrippina Vaganova

Fogo's repertoire with the Vienna State Ballet includes:

Awards In 2010, Fogo won first prize at Stora Daldansen Nordic Baltic Ballet Competition in Falun, Sweden, and first prize at the International Classical Dance Contest in Grasse, France.