Cesar Corrales

Cesar Corrales, born September 26, 1996, in Mexico City to Cuban parents, is a Cuban-Canadian ballet dancer and actor who has built a career spanning musical theatre and classical ballet. He was raised in Canada and received his earliest training from his parents: his father, Jesus Corrales, a former principal dancer with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet and Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, and his mother, Taina Morales, who danced with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet and previously served as a soloist with the Cuban National Ballet. At the age of four, Corrales appeared in the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's production of Madama Butterfly, and shortly thereafter he had a role in the Jennifer Lopez film Shall We Dance? In 2008, he took first place at the Coupe Quebec gymnastics competition and enrolled at the National Ballet of Canada's school, where he trained until being cast in a leading role in musical theatre.

Corrales made his Broadway-affiliated stage debut in Billy Elliot: The Musical, originating the starring role of Young Billy in the show's Chicago premiere. He performed in that production through the end of 2010, working alongside Tony Award-nominated actress Emily Skinner, who played his character's dance teacher. In 2011, he went on to star in the Toronto premiere of the same production. His Broadway credit is listed from 2010.

Following his departure from Billy Elliot, Corrales returned to ballet training. In 2013, he won the Prix de Lausanne, a competition that carried a scholarship from the Oak Foundation, though he declined the prize in order to continue training in Europe with his mother while she was guest teaching at the Norwegian Ballet. He joined American Ballet Theatre Studio Company in 2014, during which time he earned both the Grand Prix Award and the Artistry Award at the Youth America Grand Prix.

In 2015, Corrales joined English National Ballet. The following year he received the company's Emerging Dancer Award, and in 2017 he was promoted to principal dancer at ENB. That same year he won the National Dance Award for Outstanding Male Performance for his work in Le Corsaire. In 2018, Dance Magazine named him one of its "25 to Watch." His repertory at ENB encompassed roles including Ali in Le Corsaire, Drosselmeyer's Nephew in The Nutcracker, Mercutio in Rudolf Nureyev's Romeo and Juliet, Albrecht in Giselle, and Franz in Coppélia, as well as leading roles in Fantastic Beings, Le Jeune homme et la mort, and In the middle, somewhat elevated. He also created the role of Hilarion in the world premiere of Akram Khan's Giselle.

Corrales joined The Royal Ballet as a first soloist in 2018. In May 2019, he made his debut as Romeo in Kenneth MacMillan's Romeo and Juliet, performing opposite Francesca Hayward. He was promoted to principal dancer at The Royal Ballet in May 2021.