Mariaelena Ruiz
Mariaelena Ruiz is the recipient of the 2019 Youth America Grand Prix NYC Finals Outstanding Teacher Award. Born in Caracas, Venezuela, she was trained and coached by Prima Ballerina of Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, Nina Novak.
At age 14, Mariaelena became the youngest member of the Ballet Nacional de Caracas under the direction of Vicente Nebrada. Soon after, she won 3rd place Junior Division at the Jackson USA International Ballet Competition and received a full scholarship to continue her studies at the School of American Ballet in New York. She won the Best Couple award and 3rd Place Senior Division at the Varna International Ballet Competition and also won at the Prix Volinine in Paris.
Over the next seven years, Mariaelena performed principal roles at Bay Ballet Theater, Cleveland San Jose Ballet, and Ballet Hispanico, and as a guest artist for many companies in the US and Europe. Between 2000 to 2006, Mariaelena danced a Balanchine repertoire in the Suzanne Farrell Ballet at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
In 2000 she began teaching part-time at The Rock School for Dance Education and became a full-time Ballet Master at The Rock School in 2006, where she trained some of today’s brightest ballet stars.
In 2015 Mariaelena and her husband became part owners of Cary Ballet Conservatory, where she created the Professional Training Program; that same year, she also became the Artistic Director of Cary Ballet Company. During her time as PTP director, the Conservatory has been awarded the Outstanding School Award at YAGP, ADC, and has also been featured in Dance Magazine and Pointe Magazine. Mariaelena was on the cover of Dance Teacher Magazine with the featured story: “Mariaelena Ruiz works her magic at Cary Ballet Conservatory.”
Mariaelena has been a judge and guest teacher for YAGP and worked with the New York International Ballet Competition. She was featured in the award-winning documentary First Position and in the WHYY Philadelphia documentary about the first Curtis Institute of Music and Rock School Collaboration in 2009. In 2016 Mariaelena was named outstanding teacher at the ADC International Ballet Competition
She has coached medalists for major competitions, including Moscow IBC, Jackson USA IBC, Boston IBC, Prix de Lausanne, Youth America Grand Prix, and American Dance Competition. Her former students are dancing professionally all over the world in companies such as the National Ballet of Canada, American Ballet Theater, Het National Ballet, Dutch National Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Cincinnati Ballet, Charlotte Ballet, Washington Ballet, New York City Ballet, Houston Ballet, Ballet West, and on Broadway.
As Artistic Director of Cary Ballet Company, one of the first things she brought to fruition was a full-length Nutcracker which has been sold out and enjoyed by many since 2016. She also created the Nutcracker mini-shows as a one-hour lecture demonstration with a narrator and details of how the performance of the Nutcracker comes to life.
Aside from working with Cary Ballet Company’s very talented choreographers, Mariaelena has been responsible for bringing to the company’s “Spring Works” some very sought-after choreographers to work with the dancers to create original works.
She has choreographed and adapted excerpts of the most famous classical ballets for the company, including Le Corsaire, Bayadere, and "Don Quixote."
In 2021 and 2023 Cary Ballet was awarded the YAGP Outstanding School Award thanks to Mariaelena's leadership and dedication.