Listen "Ep. 208: Olivia Book"
Episode Synopsis
Olivia Book, is a professional ballet dancer in Ballet West’s second company in Salt Lake City, Utah. Olivia grew up in a small town in Ontario, Canada and was born with a right arm limb deficiency. She has always been a natural performer and began ballet classes at a local dance studio at the young age of four, she later became a member of a competitive dance team from the age of nine until fifteen, competing in many different styles of dance.
Olivia attended The Royal Danish Ballet summer school in 2018 and 2021. In 2019 at the age of 15, she attended the Youth American Grand Prix, placed in the top 12 in both the classical ballet and contemporary categories, and was awarded two of the most prestigious awards, Outstanding Performance and Special Commendation from the Jury at the Youth America Grand Prix and was also personally invited to the Ballet West summer intensive by Adam Sklute, BW Director. During that summer she was selected to join Ballet West Academy’s Professional Training Division at the young age of 16 and made the tough decision to move away from home to live in Salt Lake City, Utah. In 2021, she was promoted to the Trainee program and most recently to the second company in 2023. While at the BW Academy, Olivia was awarded the Adam Sklute scholarship in 2020 and 2022, for her exceptional artistry and has appeared in the TV show, The Next Step, season 8. She is studying Plant Based nutrition and is working on writing her memoir, capturing her dance journey from the very beginning, co-authored with her Mom. In her first two professional seasons with Ballet West she has performed in Dracula, Stars & Stripes,The Nutcracker and Swan Lake, Jekyll & Hyde, Serenade and Cinderella.
Olivia has been featured in Pointe magazine(2020), Front Row Magazine(2024) and interviewed by KSL news reporter Carole Mikita (2023) and Cassidy Wixom, for KSL online(2024).
Olivia can be found at:
Instagram: @olivia_book_
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@oliviabook
Ballet West website: https://www.balletwest.org/dancers/detail/olivia-book
Olivia attended The Royal Danish Ballet summer school in 2018 and 2021. In 2019 at the age of 15, she attended the Youth American Grand Prix, placed in the top 12 in both the classical ballet and contemporary categories, and was awarded two of the most prestigious awards, Outstanding Performance and Special Commendation from the Jury at the Youth America Grand Prix and was also personally invited to the Ballet West summer intensive by Adam Sklute, BW Director. During that summer she was selected to join Ballet West Academy’s Professional Training Division at the young age of 16 and made the tough decision to move away from home to live in Salt Lake City, Utah. In 2021, she was promoted to the Trainee program and most recently to the second company in 2023. While at the BW Academy, Olivia was awarded the Adam Sklute scholarship in 2020 and 2022, for her exceptional artistry and has appeared in the TV show, The Next Step, season 8. She is studying Plant Based nutrition and is working on writing her memoir, capturing her dance journey from the very beginning, co-authored with her Mom. In her first two professional seasons with Ballet West she has performed in Dracula, Stars & Stripes,The Nutcracker and Swan Lake, Jekyll & Hyde, Serenade and Cinderella.
Olivia has been featured in Pointe magazine(2020), Front Row Magazine(2024) and interviewed by KSL news reporter Carole Mikita (2023) and Cassidy Wixom, for KSL online(2024).
Olivia can be found at:
Instagram: @olivia_book_
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@oliviabook
Ballet West website: https://www.balletwest.org/dancers/detail/olivia-book
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