After seven years of transformational leadership, Walerski’s tenure with Canada’s leading contemporary dance company will come to a close at the end of its 40th anniversary season.
Ballet BC Artistic Director Medhi Walerski. Photo by Marcus Eriksson.
VANCOUVER, BC – Ballet BC announces today that Medhi Walerski, Artistic Director of the organization, will leave his role as of June 30, 2027, following the company’s landmark 40th anniversary season.
Since July 2020, Walerski has led the company through a period of transformational evolution and growth, his tenure highlighted by an artist-centred approach and deep commitment to creation, the relocation of the company to a new facility, an expanded touring program, increased dancer compensation, a world-renowned brand identity, and unprecedented audience growth.
“After many meaningful years in Vancouver, it is time to step into a new chapter centred on new creative possibilities and reconnection with family,” says Walerski. “Ballet BC has been my chosen artistic home and a community I have cherished with pride. I am profoundly grateful to the exceptional team that has inspired me, challenged me, and helped shape the company into what it is today. As I look ahead, I will always hold this time and all we achieved together close to my heart.”
Commenting on Medhi’s impact, Ballet BC Board Chair Bob Armstrong says “Medhi’s artistic vision has propelled Ballet BC forward, building a continuum of creative excellence. By attracting and fostering distinctly talented dancers and choreographers, the company has earned invitations to perform on leading stages around the world, further strengthening its global reputation. It’s a virtuous circle that has vaulted the company into a unique and remarkable place.”
“Medhi has been a remarkable co-leader—thoughtful, generous, and deeply committed to the company,” shares Ballet BC Managing Director Kathy MacKenzie. “He will be greatly missed by dancers and staff alike. Through his artistic vision, he cultivated a culture of trust and inspired the company to rise to the creative and artistic challenges he set before them. There is no doubt that Medhi leaves the company stronger and more vibrant than when he began.”
During his tenure, Walerski has become known for championing emerging artistic talent, forging lasting relationships with choreographers including Imre and Marne van Opstal, Out Innerspace, Pierre Pontvianne, Bobbi Jene Smith and Or Schraiber, Sofia Nappi, Roy Assaf, Andrea Peña, Shahar Binyamini, Micaela Taylor, and Fernando Hernando Magadan, while remaining dedicated to programming masterworks by renowned names such as William Forsythe, Crystal Pite, Johan Inger, and Jiří Kylián.
He launched key initiatives including Take Form, a dancer-led professional development platform, and Ballet BC Annex, the company’s junior program supporting new creators and pre-professional dancers. His commitment to artist equity helped secure a historic gift to enhance dancer compensation and establish year-round contracts over a ten-year period. Building on his own choreographic canon, Walerski expanded Ballet BC’s repertoire with three world premieres—seven in total since 2010—and remounted six works of existing repertoire. He commissioned dozens of new works from diverse voices, reinforcing the company’s reputation as a place for innovation and originality.
The Vancouver community benefited greatly from Walerski’s commitment to dance outreach and education, which he placed at the core of Ballet BC’s mission. In-school workshops expanded, and professional dance programming reached small communities across the province each year through the Annex program. He also deepened relationships with the company’s Artists-in-Residence, establishing meaningful new ways of sharing space and practice with BC-based Indigenous dance artists Margaret Grenier and Starr Muranko. The company’s local impact broadened even further with the launch of Ballet BC’s 44 and Winter Intensive programs, welcoming hundreds of aspiring dancers to its Vancouver studios each year.
The company’s global profile rose significantly under Walerski’s leadership, with an extensive national and international touring schedule that saw the company perform on some of the world’s most celebrated stages including Canada’s National Arts Centre, The Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts, New York City Center, the Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, Sadler’s Wells, and the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées. The company’s expanded digital presence and bold visual identity further amplified its international reach, centred around collaborations with creatives and platforms such as Marcus Eriksson, Lyle XOX, Dance Masterclass, ARTE TV, and NOWNESS that have generated award-winning content across stage, film, television, and social media.
Ballet BC’s Board of Directors will initiate an official search for the recruitment of the organization’s next leader in summer 2026. For more information on Ballet BC and Medhi Walerski, visit balletbc.com.
For further media information or high-resolution images:
CLAIRE MOHUN | 604-732-5003 ext. 212 | cmohun@balletbc.com
