Francesca Hayward

Francesca Hayward

Born: July 4, 1992
in Nairobi, Kenya
Francesca Hayward is a Kenyan-born English ballet dancer and actress, the daughter of an English father and a Kenyan mother. She is a principal dancer in the Royal Ballet at Covent Garden in London. At the age of two, she moved to the Goring-by-Sea suburb of Worthing in West Sussex to live with her grandparents. She started ballet at age 3, after her grandparents bought her a video of The Nutcracker. When she was young, she danced at Le Serve School of Ballet and Theatre Dance in Worthing until her teacher encouraged her to audition to White Lodge, the junior section of the Royal Ballet School. After being a Junior Associate from the age of nine, she entered the School at the age of 11 in 2003, and progressed to the Royal Ballet Upper School in 2008. According to Hayward, due to an injury, she did not officially graduate, but received a certificate of attendance.

Movies for Francesca Hayward...

Like Water for Chocolate
Title: Like Water for Chocolate
Character: Tita
Released: January 19, 2023
Type: Movie
A modern Mexican classic of magic realism provides the basis for The Royal Ballet’s new full-length work, reuniting Artistic Associate Christopher Wheeldon with the creative team who transformed Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and The Winter’s Tale into dance, composer Joby Talbot and designer Bob Crowley. Journey into Laura Esquivel’s captivating family saga where the central character’s emotions spill out through cooking to influence everyone around her in startling and dramatic ways. In this co-production with American Ballet Theatre, Mexican conductor Alondra de la Parra acts as musical consultant for Talbot’s newly commissioned score, with Wheeldon working closely with Esquivel to reshape her richly layered story as an entertaining and engrossing new ballet.
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The Royal Ballet: Mayerling
Title: The Royal Ballet: Mayerling
Character: Princess Stephanie
Released: October 5, 2022
Type: Movie
Inspired by dark and gripping real life events, this Royal Ballet classic depicts the sexual and morbid obsessions of Crown Prince Rudolf leading to the murder-suicide scandal with his mistress Mary Vetsera. The oppressive glamour of the Austro-Hungarian court in the 1880s sets the scene for a suspenseful drama of psychological and political intrigue as Rudolf fixates on his mortality. Kenneth MacMillan's 1978 ballet remains a masterpiece of storytelling and this revival marks 30 years since the choreographer’s death. Expect to see the Company at its dramatic finestacross potent ensemble scenes and some of the most daring and emotionally demanding pas de deux in the ballet repertory.
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Royal Ballet All-Star Gala
Title: Royal Ballet All-Star Gala
Released: December 26, 2020
Type: Movie
The stars of the Royal Ballet perform a very special selection of the best of ballet. From the ultra-contemporary Untouchable by Hofesh Schechter to the Hollywood glitz of Carousel, there is something for everyone in this glorious gala. The stellar partnership of Marianela Nuñez and Vadim Muntagirov tackle one of the great classical pas de deux from Don Quixote, and the larger forces of the whole company are seen in Elite Syncopations. Natalia Osipova dances the famous Dying Swan, and choreographers including Wayne McGregor, Christopher Wheeldon and Cathy Marston rub shoulders with Frederick Ashton and Kenneth Macmillan. The orchestra of the Royal Opera House is conducted by Jonathan Lo. Presented by Anita Rani.
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Audrey
Title: Audrey
Character: Audrey Hepburn
Released: November 30, 2020
Type: Movie
An unprecedented and intimate look at the life, work and enduring legacy of British actress Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993).
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Live from Covent Garden - Royal Opera House
Title: Live from Covent Garden - Royal Opera House
Character: Dancer
Released: June 13, 2020
Type: Movie
Live from Covent Garden will celebrate ballet and opera in programmes of dance and music, curated by artistic directors of the Royal Opera House: Antonio Pappano, Music Director of The Royal Opera, Oliver Mears, Director of Opera, and Kevin O’Hare, Director of The Royal Ballet.
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The Cellist / Dances at a Gathering (The Royal Ballet)
Title: The Cellist / Dances at a Gathering (The Royal Ballet)
Character: Dancer
Released: February 25, 2020
Type: Movie
The Royal Ballet presents the world premiere of Cathy Marston's first work for the Company on the Main Stage alongside a revival of Jerome Robbins’s timeless classic of pure dance. The Cellist is a one-act ballet about British cellist Jacqueline du Pré, from her discovery of the cello through her celebrity as one of the most extraordinary players of the instrument to her frustration and struggle with multiple sclerosis. Jerome Robbins's Dances at a Gathering is a fluid exercise in pure dance for five couples, set to piano music by Fryderyk Chopin.
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Cats
Title: Cats
Character: Victoria
Released: December 19, 2019
Type: Movie
A tribe of cats called the Jellicles must decide yearly which one will ascend to the Heaviside Layer and come back to a new Jellicle life.
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Romeo and Juliet: Beyond Words
Title: Romeo and Juliet: Beyond Words
Character: Juliet
Released: December 16, 2019
Type: Movie
As members of the feuding Capulet and Montague families, Romeo and Juliet should be sworn enemies, but they fall deeply in love and marry in secret. That very day, disastrous circumstances lead Romeo to fight and kill Juliet’s cousin Tybalt, setting off a chain of events that culminate in tragedy.
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Concerto / Enigma Variations / Raymonda Act III (Royal Ballet)
Title: Concerto / Enigma Variations / Raymonda Act III (Royal Ballet)
Character: Dora Penny (Dorabella)
Released: November 5, 2019
Type: Movie
From The Royal Ballet’s classical origins in the works of Petipa, to the home-grown choreographers who put British ballet on the world stage, this mixed programme highlights the versatility of the Company. Petipa’s Raymonda Act III is Russian classical ballet summarized in one act, full of sparkle and precise technique, while Ashton’s Enigma Variations is quintessentially British in every way – from its score by Elgar and period designs by Julia Trevelyan Oman, to Ashton’s signature style, the essence of British ballet. Concerto, MacMillan’s fusion of classical technique with a contemporary mind, completes a programme that shows the breadth of the Company’s heritage.
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The Royal Ballet: Within the Golden Hour / Medusa / Flight Pattern
Title: The Royal Ballet: Within the Golden Hour / Medusa / Flight Pattern
Character: Principal Dancer (Golden Hour)
Released: May 16, 2019
Type: Movie
Christopher Wheeldon's Within the Golden Hour is based around seven couples separating and intermingling, to music by Vivaldi and Ezio Bosso and lit with the rich colours suggested by sunset. In Flight Pattern, Crystal Pite combines Górecki's haunting “Symphony of Sorrowful Songs” with a large dance ensemble to create a poignant and passionate reflection on migration. Between them, Medusa is new work inspired by the Greek myth, created for The Royal Ballet by the acclaimed choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, which juxtaposes Purcell arias with an electronic score by Olga Wojciechowska.
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Swan Lake
Title: Swan Lake
Character: Prince Siegfried's younger sister
Released: June 12, 2018
Type: Movie
The Royal Ballet performs Tchaikovsky's classic ballet, choreographed by Liam Scarlett and starring Marianela Nunez as Odette/Odile and Vadim Muntagirov as Prince Siegfried.
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The Sun Is God
Title: The Sun Is God
Released: November 12, 2017
Type: Movie
1918 - A woman imagines her lover has returned from the horrors of war in France, remembering moments shared together. A tale of love and loss told through classical ballet.
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Woolf Works
Title: Woolf Works
Character: I Now, I Then / Becomings
Released: February 8, 2017
Type: Movie
The first revival of Wayne McGregor’s critically acclaimed ballet triptych to music by Max Richter, inspired by the works of Virginia Woolf.
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The Nutcracker
Title: The Nutcracker
Character: Clara
Released: December 8, 2016
Type: Movie
The young Clara creeps downstairs on Christmas Eve to play with her favourite present – a Nutcracker. But the mysterious magician Drosselmeyer is waiting to sweep her off on a magical adventure. After defeating the Mouse King, the Nutcracker and Clara travel through the Land of Snow to the Kingdom of Sweets, where the Sugar Plum Fairy treats them to a wonderful display of dances. Back home, Clara thinks she must have been dreaming – but doesn’t she recognize Drosselmeyer’s nephew?
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Giselle
Title: Giselle
Character: Pas de six
Released: April 6, 2016
Type: Movie
The peasant girl Giselle discovers the true identity of her lover Albrecht – and that he is promised to another. Giselle kills herself. Her soul enters the ranks of the Wilis – shades of young women who died before their wedding day. All men that come across their path are compelled to dance themselves to death, and Albrecht falls into their trap. Giselle’s intercession saves Albrecht and releases her soul from the Wilis’ power.
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Dancing the Nutcracker: Inside the Royal Ballet
Title: Dancing the Nutcracker: Inside the Royal Ballet
Character: Herself, Sugar Plum Fairy
Released: January 1, 2016
Type: Movie
This Christmas, step into the magical world of The Nutcracker. For the first time in many years, the Royal Ballet has given full access behind the scenes for a landmark 90-minute documentary as they prepare for this season's yuletide production.
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The Nutcracker - Royal Ballet
Title: The Nutcracker - Royal Ballet
Character: Clara
Released: December 16, 2015
Type: Movie
The 2015 production of "The Nutcracker" by the Royal Ballet
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La Fille Mal Gardée (The Royal Ballet)
Title: La Fille Mal Gardée (The Royal Ballet)
Character: Hen
Released: May 5, 2015
Type: Movie
Frederick Ashton's La Fille mal gardée (The Wayward Daughter) is one of the choreographer's most joyous and colourful creations. Inspired by his love for the Suffolk countryside, the ballet is set on a farm and tells a story of love between Lise, the daughter of Widow Simone, and Colas, a young farmer. It contains some of Ashton's most stunning choreography, most strikingly in the series of energetic pas de deux that express the youthful passion of the young lovers, performed here by Natalia Osipova and Steven McRae. The ballet is laced with exuberant good humour, and elements of national folk dance, from dancing chickens and a maypole dance to a Lancashire clog dance for Widow Simone, performed by Philip Mosley.
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The Nutcracker (The Royal Ballet)
Title: The Nutcracker (The Royal Ballet)
Character: Clara
Released: December 31, 1969
Type: Movie
Clara is given an enchanted Nutcracker doll on Christmas Eve. As midnight strikes, she creeps downstairs to find a magical adventure awaiting her and her Nutcracker.
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The Royal Ballet: A Diamond Celebration
Title: The Royal Ballet: A Diamond Celebration
Released: December 31, 1969
Type: Movie
The Royal Ballet’s dazzling Principals lead an evening not to be missed, their sparkling talents a perfect fit for a diamond anniversary. Celebrating the 60th anniversary of The Friends of Covent Garden, this programme recognises the amazing support of all ROH Friends past and present. The showcase will demonstrate the breadth and diversity of The Royal Ballet’s repertory in classical, contemporary and heritage works. It will also include world premieres by Pam Tanowitz, Joseph Toonga and Valentino Zucchetti plus the Company’s first performance of For Four by Artistic Associate Christopher Wheeldon and a performance of George Balanchine’s Diamonds.