Ballet Edmonton replaces artistic director, dancers seem to have left

Ballet Edmonton replaced its Artistic Director in late-March 2026, without giving any reason publicly.

Kirsten Wicklund, who was replaced, said in her Instagram post on 26th March 2026;

"After two remarkable seasons, I have made the decision to move on from my role as Artistic Director of Ballet Edmonton."

"While my intention was to support a successful transition period into summer 2026, the organization has chosen to pursue their own vision immediately."

Ballet Edmonton's website now shows Diego Ramalho as Artistic Director. There seems to be no further information about the leadership change or any explanation from the company, which is based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

Ben Waters, who joined the company in 2023 and is also active as a composer, said he resigned from the company.

Waters said in his Instagram post on 18th April;

"After recent leadership and organizational changes at Ballet Edmonton, I've resigned from the company along with my colleagues.

"It wasn't a decision any of us took lightly."

Dancer Chloe Bennett also said she left the company in her Instagram post.

At the timing of writing this article, the dancers section of the company website seems to have been taken down altogether. The link to Water's biography page on Ballet Edmonton's website https://balletedmonton.ca/dancer/ben-waters/ did not work. Neither do the links to other dancers' biography pages.

Such biography pages are typically found under about us on any dance companies' websites.

Ballet Edmonton typically is an ensemble of eight-to-ten contemporary dancers.