Grace Reed
Grace Reed is blessed to have trained professionally with Kansas City Ballet School and Houston Ballet Academy. She studied under Racheal Nye, Grace Holmes, Kim Cowen, Claudio Munoz, Sally Rojas, and Vikki Attard. While maintaining a 4.0 grade point average and graduating with honors from the accredited A Beka Academy Homeschool program, she continued to pursue her career in ballet. She spent her summers on full scholarship to Pacific Northwest Ballet’s and Kansas City Ballet’s summer intensive programs. Ms. Reed has had the privilege of working with choreographers such as Septime Weber, Adam Hougland, and Val Caniparoli while being in the Second Company of Kansas City Ballet. Throughout her career, Ms. Reed has performed in works that include Stanton Welch’s Brigade, A Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra, and The Nutcracker; Devon Carney’s Swan Lake, Peter Pan, and The Nutcracker; Todd Bolender’s The Nutcracker as Clara; William Whitener’s A Midsummer’s Night Dream; Victoria Morgan’s Cinderella; and Val Caniparoli’s Lady of the Camellias. In 2020, Ms. Reed’s growing interest in choreographing became apparent when the contemporary solos she created placed Top 10 and Top 24 in the YAGP Kansas City Regionals. Ms. Reed has been an artist with NWA Ballet Theatre since fall 2020.
get to know the dancer
Where are you from?
Because I’ve lived so many places in my life, I consider myself to be a Texan with a dash of Kansas City in me!
In one sentence, describe your "discovery" of ballet. Or, what was your pathway to ballet?
I think for me, my pathway to ballet came from being inspired by classical music.
Do you remember the first ballet you ever saw? What was it and how did it affect you?
The first full length ballet I ever saw was Romeo & Juliet by Kansas City Ballet. Immediately after seeing that ballet I knew it was all I wanted to do for the rest of my life.
What do you like to do outside of dance (hobbies, interests, etc.)?
I love exploring the outdoors, watching lots of movies, and trying out new recipes from my Grandmother.
What are some of your other talents?
During quarantine, I picked up playing the guitar and cross stitch. However, I love knitting - making sweaters is my favorite!
What are some of your indulgences?
Peanut butter!!
What is your favorite role that you have performed? Have not performed?
My favorite role that I have performed is a villager girl from Act 1 of Swan Lake. I had just recovered from a surgery, so it was a big moment for me to make it back to the stage. Because the acting side of ballet has always intrigued me, I would love to one day perform as Juliet.
Do you have any pre-performance rituals?
Just being in the theater is enough to get me in the right headspace for a performance! However, I always have to rosin the insides of pointe shoes. I’ve had too many shoes slip off my heels on stage to bypass this ritual.
If you weren’t a dancer, what would you be?
This is a hard question for me to answer because I’ve never not envisioned myself as a dancer. If I had to pick- I would choose something in the fashion industry or a flight attendant.
How do you spend your summer breaks?
I try to give myself time to rest during the summer but also keep myself in shape by attending a summer program if I can.
If I could visit any country in the world it would be….
Italy! Because pizza is my favorite food, I’ve always dreamed of having authentic Italian pizza.
What does Northwest Arkansas mean to you? Why is it special or different from other places you've danced/trained?
NWA is already a special place to me even though I’ve lived here for a short time. It’s so beautiful and a welcoming environment! I love exploring new towns, and I’m so excited to see more of this town.
What are three things people might not know about you?
I’ve lived in 5 states for a total of 12 moves in 21 years.
I won two tickets to see an exclusive pre-Super Bowl concert in Houston by Taylor Swift (my favorite singer/songwriter who I had never been able to see live). Unfortunately, the age to use the tickets was 18- I was 8 months too young.
When I was 6 months old my family had to evacuate our home in New Mexico because of the Cerro Grande Forest Fire.