Birthplace
Porto, Portugal
Dance Training
Ballettschule Theater Basel
The Royal Ballet School
Year Joined
2024
Previous Companies
Semperoper Ballett Dresden - 2017-2023
Favorite Roles
Prince Florimund in The Sleeping Beauty by Aaron Watkin, after Petipa, adapted by Marcelo Gomes
Golden Idol in La Bayadere by Aaron Watkin, after Petipa
Tony in The Second Detail by William Forsythe
Desmond in The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude by William Forsythe
Favorite Ballets
It's hard to decide for me, I like many ballets for different reasons. I mostly gravitate to exciting pieces of music.
One of my top choices is Don Quixote. I love the story, the music and the dancing looks incredibly fun! I like particularly Carlos Acosta's take on the Petipa classic.
Swan Lake especially the grand pas de deux in the third act!
I would also mention William Forsythe's In the Middle Somewhat Elevated a fantastic display of dynamic, rhythm and great physicality.
A Defining Moment
A defining moment in my career so far, has definitely been during the process of The Sleeping Beauty when Julie Kent went to Semperoper Ballet to assist with the staging. Her visit led to me joining Houston Ballet!
My proudest moment on stage was my first principal role in the narrative ballet, The Sleeping Beauty. It was something that I had been striving for, for a long while so I'll always remember how much of a journey it was telling this story on stage and the feeling of reward at the end!
Bio
Rodrigo Pinto joins Houston Ballet as Corps de Ballet in July 2024 from Semperoper Ballett Dresden. Originally from Porto, Portugal, Pinto began his ballet training in Switzerland at the Ballettschule Theater Basel before moving on to the Royal Ballet School in England. His repertoire includes Aaron Watkin’s (Marcelo Gomez) The Sleeping Beauty and La Bayadere, and William Forsythe’s The Second Detail and The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude.
Saul Newport
Jaclyn Oakley