Antonia Franceschi

Antonia Franceschi was selected by George Balanchine to join the New York City Ballet and is a Time Out Award Winner for Outstanding Achievement In Dance. 

Works have been created for her by Balanchine, Robbins, Martins, Lubovitch, Baldwin, McGregor, Clarke, Armitage, Phillips, and van Laast. As a young dancer while still in high school she starred in the films Fame and Grease. Before joining NYCB she danced in Makarova and Company and was partnered by Sir Anthony Dowell.

Franceschi has produced four programs of The New York Ballet Stars, which performed at The Queen Elizabeth and Royal Festival Halls and toured both The Harrogate and Sintra Festivals. She was an advisor for The South Bank Center for five years. She has choreographed for both British and American companies, and has recently formed her own Neo-classical company, AFD Just Dance, after being invited to The Valetta's Opera House, Malta. 

Franceschi was one of the judges on BBC's Young Dancer 2015 competition. She was invited by Boris Charmatz to dance in Musée De La Dance at the Tate Modern. Franceschi has taught at Rambert Dance Company, The Royal Ballet, Richard Alston Dance Company, Random DV8, New York Theatre Ballet, Juilliard, and Alvin Ailey. 

The Soho Theatre performed her play Up From The Waste directed by Nancy Meckler (London’s West End Four Stars, Telegraph). She received a grant for POP8 for The Lion and Unicorn Theatre where she collaborated with Mark Baldwin, Zoe Martlew, and Ballet Black. Franceschi was interviewed for the book Balanchine, Then and Now, and has been a guest on Woman's Hour.

In 2018 she choreographed Othello at The Globe Theatre and was the Movement Director for Claire Van Kampen at The Park Theatre. 

She was the Associate Choreographer for Arlene Philips duet for Candoco, and the Rehearsal Director for The Royal Opera Houses’ Other Stories with Wendy Whelan and Edward Watson. 

She’s choreographed for UK companies, The New York Theatre Ballet, Ballet NY, Barnard College, Rambert School, and most recently made the duet Liberandum for Joaquin de Luz and Katey Culler, performed at Real Madrid 2019.

In February 2020 she premiered Uncaged at Dancespace for NYTB with music by Claire Van Kampen. This summer she is choreographing the play Semmelweis, for the Bristol Old Vic.