Francesca Hayward

Francesca Hayward (*Nairobi, 1992) is a principal dancer at the Royal Ballet and an English actress born in Kenya. She trained with Valerie LeServe in Sussex before entering the Royal Ballet School where she studied from 2003 to 2011. She graduated from the Company during the 2010/11 season, rose to First Artist in 2013, Soloist in 2014, First Soloist in 2015 and Principal in 2016. While a student, she won the 2009 Lynn Seymour Award for Expressive Dance, the 2010 Young British Dancer of the Year Award and the Silver Medal as well as the Audience Award at the 2010 Genée International Ballet Competition. After joining The Royal Ballet, she represented the Company at the 2012 International Competition for the Erik Bruhn Award and won Best Emerging Artist (2014) and Best Dancer (2016, 2019) at the Critics’ Circle National Dance Awards (UK).