Àngels danced sardanes (Catalan traditional dance) in her teenage years in a group that competed in championships and enjoyed social dancing many different styles (Lindy hop, Rock-'n'-Roll, Balboa, Collegiate Shag, Cha-cha-cha, etc.) years before discovering a ballet class for adults in Germany back in 2017. Ever since then she has invested her spare time attending ballet classes and workshops to learn technique, pointe work and repertoire. After moving to the UK, and having attended many years the beloved Chelsea Summer School, she has recently joined the company.

Maria did ballet briefly as a child but properly found her passion for dance during university, and she has not stopped since. She has previously performed with London Amateur Ballet and London Performance Company, and has recently completed her first Royal Academy of Dance vocational exam.

She first read about Chelsea Ballet as a child and was delighted to join the company in May 2018. She danced in her first show that Christmas and looks forward to more productions ahead.

Nicky’s love of dancing began over thirty years ago when he took ballet classes for two years at his local adult education centre. After a gap of many years and following the end of a long career as a health professional, he began attending a local dance and fitness class from 2012 until 2013. This very positive experience encouraged him to enroll in English National Ballet’s (ENB) adult ballet programme in 2013 which he now attends at an intermediate level. Always keen also to perform repertoire, Nicky joined London Amateur Ballet (LAB) in 2013. He subsequently performed in excerpts from The Nutcracker and La Sylphide in the LAB annual gala at the Bloomsbury Theatre in 2014 and in the following year, excerpts from Le Corsaire and Les Sylphides, at the same venue. In July 2016 he played the role of the KIng in the London Performance Company's production of Sleeping Beauty.

Nicky is also an enthusiastic amateur community dancer. Under the auspices of ENB, he performed the Big Dance Pledge, choreographed by ENB, in Lyric Square, Hammersmith, in 2013, and the Big Dance Pledge, choreographed by Scottish Ballet, at Westfield, in 2014. He also took part in the Big Commonwealth Dance, Beats for Peace, held in Trafalgar Square in the summer of 2014. In July 2016 he performed the Big Dance held in Trafalgar Square and choreographed by Akram Khan. He was absolutely delighted to have the opportunity to join Chelsea Ballet.

Born and raised in Vancouver, Canada, Shana spent most of her school years involved in team sports such as volleyball, basketball and softball, finishing with rugby in her senior years. At the age of 21, she traded in her rugby boots for tutus and pointe shoes and ventured into the world of ballet. She began her RAD vocational training at Cameron Dance Academy and remained there until she moved to London in 2014, where she continued her training at RAD HQ.

Shana has previously performed with Cameron Dance Academy, London Amateur Ballet, Crystal Ballet and Balletomane and is currently kicking the can down the road preparing for her RAD Advanced 2 exam. Some notable performances through the years have been Vintner's March (Giselle), Waltz of the Flowers (Nutcracker), Serenade (Balanchine), Swanhilda and her Friends (Coppelia), Waltz of the Hours (Coppélia), Candied Fairy (Sleeping Beauty), Cupid (Don Quixote) and Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux Variation (Balanchine) as well as many original works.

When she isn’t indulging in all things ballet, Shana enjoys exploring new places, trekking up mountains, and anything involving bacon and maple syrup.

Zhiai began her ballet training at the age of 22, since then she started to develop a huge passion for ballet. Prior to this, Zhiai trained in Chinese classical dance and ballroom dance when she was young. Within the first five months of ballet training, Zhiai passed the RAD Ballet Intermediate Foundation Examination with a Distinction.

Since moving to London, Zhiai has been taking ballet classes with Georgian and Russian ballet mistresses Inga George and Alyona Solovkova. She performed in the production of La Bayadère with the London Ballet Theatre as Gamzatti in the final Act and as a soloist in the Shades. Zhiai won third place in the category of classical solo senior non-professional at European Ballet Grand Prix 2023 and a bronze medal for classical solo in the senior non-professional group at Grand Jeté International Dance Awards 2023.

Outside of ballet, Zhiai holds a bachelor and master’s degree in Government and Politics from the London School of Economics and Political Science and works full-time as a public affairs/government relations consultant.