#TBT: Daniil Simkin as Ali in "Le Corsaire," Then and Now

June 7, 2017

American Ballet Theatre is in the midst of Le Corsaire this week as part of the company’s annual season at the Metropolitan Opera House. One of the ballet’s most celebrated and challenging male roles is Ali, the Slave. Daniil Simkin is dancing the part this week. A dancer who never seems to disappoint, Simkin is sure to pull out all the technical stops and dazzle audiences with his charisma (case in point).

Ali is a role that Simkin has been dancing for more than half his life. Before his ABT debut as Ali in 2012, Simkin put together a compilation of himself performing the variation at different stages in his training. Even at 12 years old, Simkin had impressive ballon and bravura. We loved watching him transition from a lanky pre-teen with shaky pirouettes into a confident and graceful performer. The clips show off his signature feather-light jumps, and when he hits the ending pose at 2:05 you can glimpse his already infectious onstage personality. Stick around until the end for an extra, adorable clip of Simkin as a kid. And below, see Simkin’s sparkling take on the variation from earlier this week. Happy #ThrowbackThursday!