Magali Messac

Magali Messac, a French-American ballet dancer, was born and raised in the south of France, where she received her early training from Olga and Henry Taneeff. In 1969, she joined the Hamburg Ballet, and four years later, was promoted to principal dancer. That year, she received the Oberdorfer Culture Award for the most talented young artist. In 1978, she came to the United States as a principal dancer for the Pennsylvania Ballet, and in 1980, was invited by Mikhail Baryshnikov to join American Ballet Theatre as one of their principal ballerinas.