Margaret Mullin to Leave PNB at the End of 2019-2020 Season

[Helene]

Here is the press release:

Pacific Northwest Ballet Soloist Margaret Mullin to Leave at End of 2019-2020 Season. 

SEATTLE, WA — Pacific Northwest Ballet soloist Margaret Mullin has announced that she will be leaving the company at the end of the 2019-2020 season, following a 12-year career with PNB. Ms. Mullin joined PNB as an apprentice in 2008, becoming a corps de ballet dancer in 2009. She was promoted to soloist in 2014, and has also choreographed for the company’s mainstage and choreographers’ showcase, as well as the Pacific Northwest Ballet School.

“In 2002, at the age of 13, I attended my first ballet summer course at Pacific Northwest Ballet, and I fell head over heels in love with the incredible organization built by Kent Stowell and Francia Russell,” said Ms. Mullin in her announcement. “It became my dream to dance in this company and I feel tremendously grateful that my dream came true. Now, after a successful 12-year career with PNB, it is time for me embark on the next phase of my career.  I have grown a great deal as an artist in my 12 years at PNB, and now I feel it is time for me to move on to new challenges and more creative endeavors in dance.  Ballet has been my greatest passion all of my life and I continue to feel inspired to explore its possibilities. In addition to pursuing opportunities as dancer, creator and coach, I plan to continue work on my documentary film (No Dominion: The Ian Horvath Story), which has enjoyed great film festival success so far.  I will also continue my other labor of love: my podcast Beyond the Barre, sharing inspiring stories of figures of the dance community. I know that my love for all aspects of my field will aid me in achieving my ultimate goal of becoming a successful artistic director, helping other artists realize their potential while delighting a new generation of ballet fans. I am very proud of my career at PNB and have had many incredible moments that I will always treasure. I am extremely thankful for the wonderful artists, mentors and fans that have supported me for over a decade here.  They have had a profound impact on my life in so many ways. I now feel ready for a new chapter and look forward to exploring what fantastic adventures await me in this incredible art form.” 

Margaret Mullin is from Tucson, Arizona. She studied on scholarship at Ballet Arts Tucson with Mary Beth Cabana and at Pacific Northwest Ballet School, and she attended summer courses at Ballet Tucson and Pacific Northwest Ballet School. She was the recipient of a Thurber Scholarship Award in 2003 and 2004, the 2006 Founding Director Scholarship Award from Angela Whitehill of Burklyn Ballet, and in 2011 she received a prestigious Dance Fellowship Award from the Princess Grace Foundation USA. She is also the recipient of a 2018 CityArtist Award from the City of Seattle Office of Arts & Culture. In 2017 she appeared as a guest speaker at the Dance/USA national conference. 

Ms. Mullin has performed leading roles in George Balanchine’s Agon, Apollo, Coppélia (Waltz of the Golden Hours, Spinner), Emeralds, George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker^® (Sugar Plum Fairy, Harlequin, Hot Chocolate, Marzipan, Dewdrop), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Hermia, Butterfly), and Square Dance; Peter Boal’s Giselle (Berthe, Peasant pas de deux, Zulme); David Dawson’s A Million Kisses to My Skin; Ulysses Dove’s Vespers; Nacho Duato’s Rassemblement; William Forsythe’s In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated, New Suite and The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude; Kiyon Gaines’ Sum Stravinsky; Paul Gibson’s The Piano Dance and Rush; Ronald Hynd’s The Sleeping Beauty (Bluebird pas de deux); Jiri Kylian’s Forgotten Land, Petite Mort, and Sechs Tänze (Six Dances); Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette (Nurse); Benjamin Millepied’s 3 Movements; Justin Peck’s Year of the Rabbit and In the Countenance of Kings; Crystal Pite’s Emergence; Victor Quijada’s Suspension of Disbelief; Alexei Ratmansky’s Don Quixote (Juanita); Jerome Robbins’ The Concert, Fancy Free, Glass Pieces, and West Side Story Suite (Rosalia); Kent Stowell’s Carmina Burana, Nutcracker (Clara, Flora), and Swan Lake (Queen Mother, Pas de trois, Czardas, Neapolitan Dance); Susan Stroman’s TAKE FIVE…More or Less; Twyla Tharp’s In the Upper Room and Nine Sinatra Songs; and Christopher Wheeldon’s Tide Harmonic. She originated leading roles in Marco Goecke’s Place a Chill, Mark Morris’ Kammermusik No. 3, Justin Peck’s Debonair, Victor Quijada’s Mating Theory, Matthew Neenan’s Bacchus, Eva Stone’s FOIL, and Price Suddarth’s Signature. 

Ms. Mullin has choreographed works for Pacific Northwest Ballet’s NEXT STEP choreographers’ showcase. In 2012, she choreographed her first ballet for PNB’s mainstage season, Lost in Light, and in 2019 created Saccade for the PNB School’s Professional Division. She has also choreographed works and performed as a guest artist for Ballet Tucson. She serves as a regular guest instructor for Ballet Tucson and Ballet Arts Tucson, and also teaches dance in a freelance capacity. 

In collaboration with filmmaker Nel Shelby, Ms. Mullin is the director and producer of the documentary film No Dominion: The Ian Horvath Story, which celebrates the life of late dance champion and AIDS awareness advocate Ian Horvath. She is the host of the dance podcast "Beyond the Barre" on iTunes’ Premier Dance Network, and has been featured by Dance Magazine, Dance Informa, Seattle Magazine, EmpowHer New York, Dance Lifestyle, Pointe Magazine, on the Balancing Pointe podcast, and as a representative for Discount Dance Supply. Ms. Mullin is also a return guest on KING-TV’s talk show “New Day Northwest.” She is a brand ambassador for Five12 Athletic Apparel, Nuun Hydration and Zeyba Apparel in addition to serving as a social media influencer for Seattle International Film Festival and Enchant Seattle. For examples of her work, visit MargaretMullin.com.

 to her on the next chapter of her life and career, but 😢 for us.

[seattle_dancer]

I was line at the airport and gasped out loud when I saw this notification in my email, like a dagger in my heart.  I did not see this coming at all!  Sigh.  I was so enjoying Mullin’s return after her long absence.  In the fall I was just talking with my friends how she has so much more maturity and artistry than other dancers with which she shares roles.  Don’t get me wrong, I do adore those other dancers, they have wonderful gifts, but they need some time to age like a fine wine.   After Mullin leaves there is going to be a gap.

Most recently I’ve noticed what depth she has (Hermia in Midsummers) and groundedness (FOIL) but when her star was rising to Soloist I recall how clean and consistent her technique was - I never saw anything funny like shoulders pulled up or stress in fingers or feet not pointed.  

I wish the press release mentioned some upcoming roles where we can catch her later this season.  She doesn’t have any Stowell Cinderella credits listed but there are three Boal Giselle roles, most notable the Peasant pas de deux.  I believe there is a You Tube vidéo out there of her rehearsing the Peasant pdd.

Oh also, I did see the short version of her documentary that has been released and she and Nel Shelby have done a fine job.  There is a lot of historical footage that I was unaware she had obtained.  I was living in Manhattan in the eighties and it’s really great that time has been documented and how bravely Horvath approached everything.  It was also a great tribute to his family as well. 

[SandyMcKean]

Could injuries have something to do with this?

(I've always greatly admired Margaret's impeccable technique, energy, and sheer commitment she brings to the stage. I will miss this fireball!)

[sandik]

I think it took longer to come back from her hip troubles than she anticipated.  I'm very sorry to see her leave.  Like others here, I first saw her as a speedy technician, but she's really added to her interpretive skills since she's been back -- she's been a pleasure to watch.

[Helene]

Here is an article in a series in Pointe Magazine featuring dancers who are retiring/leaving their companies and who won't be able to celebrate their farewells onstage due to COVID-19:

Margaret Mullin