Noelani Pantastico
Pacific Northwest Ballet (PNB) principal dancer Noelani Pantastico has announced that she will retire to teach at the Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet (CPYB) after completing a 25-year dance career. Pantastico trained at CPYB before being hired by PNB in 1997.
“Leaving this illustrious career was one of the most difficult and heartbreaking decisions of my life, but I’m fortunate to be able to make this leap with a clear sense of purpose and an overwhelming sense of excitement about what’s to come,” Pantastico said. “If it wasn’t for the confidence I gave me during my first summer program at PNB in 1994, I would not have pursued the future of dance and would not be the artist I am today.”
Pantastico plans to stay on as co-artistic director of Seattle Dance Collective, the company she founded in 2019 with PNB lead dancer James Young-Moore.
PNB viewers have more opportunities to watch Pantastico’s performance, starring Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Romeo and Juliet. She is scheduled to dance on the opening night on February 4th and the closing ceremony on February 13th.
