Francesca Velicu is a Romanian ballet dancer known for her emotional depth, strong technique, and powerful dramatic presence, performing a wide range of classical and contemporary works.
She began her training at the Choreography High school in Bucharest. After receiving 2nd place at Youth America Grand Prix, she was invited to study at Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow.
She danced with the Romanian National Opera under the direction of Johan Kobborg for one season, before joining English National Ballet in 2016.
She is the 2018 recipient of the ‘Laurence Olivier Award’ for ‘Outstanding Achievement in Dance’ following her performance of ‘The Chosen One’ in Pina Bausch’ s ‘Le Sacre du printemps’. She was chosen to be part of Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2019.
Her repertoire includes : Giselle in Akram Khan’s ‘Giselle’ , Clara/Sugar Plum in ‘Nutcracker’, First Couple in George Balanchine’s ‘Theme and Variations’, Kitri in Alexander Gorski’s ‘Don Quijote’ , Trio Couple in Alexei Ratmansky’s ‘Concerto DSCH’, 1st couple in Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui’s Laid in Earth, 3rd Principal Couple in Liam Scarlett’s ‘No Man’s Land’ and many others.