Soleil de Jager
No other dancer started their career at Scapino Ballet Rotterdam at such a young age: as an eleven-year-old dance talent, Soleil de Jager was chosen in 2014 to dance a choreography by Ed Wubbe with Scapino dancers Bonnie Doets and Mischa van Leeuwen during the annual Liberation Concert on the Amstel River.
“I remember the phone call well, my mother answered: 'Whether I wanted to participate in this project.' I could hardly believe it, you normally only get an opportunity like that in your wildest dreams.”
At the time, Soleil was taking classes six times a week at an amateur dance school in Middelburg, and it was during the Dansdroom Zeeland project that she first met Ed Wubbe. She was, she says, a very shy girl at that time, but that shyness falls away because of the pleasure and passion she experiences when she dances. Even at the Liberation Concert. "It was nerve-wracking, but once on stage I was able to let go of the tension. Bonnie and Mischa gave me that confidence, that feeling of 'we're doing this together.'"
Special thanks to: Jeugdtheater Hofplein // Video by Iris Hendriks
Online auditions
Soon after, Soleil leaves for Antwerp, where she is accepted at the Royal Ballet School. Although she enjoys the classes, her stay at the accompanying boarding school is hard on her - she misses family life - so after a year and a half she transfers to the Royal Conservatory in The Hague, where she finds a much better ground with a host family, at a classmate's home.
Meanwhile, she kept in touch with Bonnie Doets and was also regularly allowed to join a class at Scapino. "My dream became clearer and clearer because of that: getting a contract at Scapino, although I also realized that that is only for very few a reality."
In the middle of the first coronalockdown, she auditioned, at both Scapino and Introdans, for an internship position. "Suddenly all the auditions were held online, so you had to send in videos of yourself. My goodness, I re-recorded all those videos a hundred times." With results, because she is welcome at both companies, but she has no trouble choosing: in season 2021/2022 she starts as a trainee at Scapino.
My dream became clearer and clearer because of that: getting a contract at Scapino, although I also realized that that is only for very few a reality.
Own initiative and motivation
"That was quite a switch: from training to company. You no longer get all the explanation and attention you were used to getting at school. You have to show a lot more initiative, find your own motivation, make sure you learn different roles in case another dancer drops out. It's a good test for yourself, I've already learned so much."
She dances as a substitute a number of times in Ed Wubbes Casablanca, gets to try her hand at the dance form 'threading' in Justin de Jager's Intertwine, which is totally new to her, and - after her employment contract has been converted into a permanent contract - she will be performing with OSCAR for almost three weeks in September 2022 in a sold-out Theater Carré. "An emotional experience; after all, it's the place where it all started in 2014," she said.
Curriculum Vitae
Born
2002, Gorinchem, The Netherlands
Education
Royal Ballet School Antwerp
Royal Conservatoire The Hague
Scholarships, awards and prizes
- Incentive award Cultuurfonds School for Young Talent - 2019
- Dansersfonds '79 Scholarship - 2020
- Kylián Foundation Scholarship - 2021
With Scapino since
2021
Performed in (i.a.)
Intertwine, The Square 2, Oscar, Casablanca
Performing in Carré was an emotional experience
Support and love
She wants to be a dancer who "tries everything," who is open to new ideas and influences and constantly remains on the lookout for other sides in herself, in order to show above all her own strength, personality and uniqueness.
Besides dance, her parents and two brothers are most important to her. "I still go home every free weekend; I use the enormous amount of support and love from my family as a motivation. In addition, I love the sea. My parents now live in Monster, near The Hague, and I love to walk on the beach with my dog Saar, and organize my thoughts while walking."
Photography: Khalid Amakran | Interview: Astrid van Leeuwen
This season featuring in
Danced in a.o.
-
Song of the dark forest
A moving, compelling and comforting performance, performed by the complete group of dancers of Scapino, an opera singer and live music by the DoelenEnsemble. -
Two Tales
Young emerging dance makers tell poignant stories with solid roots in the lore and customs of their native land. -
Casablanca
Casablanca is a visual performance about passion, freedom and desire for a better world. -
Oscar
Carré en Scapino Ballet presenteren: Oscar, een hommage aan Oscar Carré met dans, theater, circus én live muziek van Blaudzun. Exclusief te zien in Carré. -
The Square2
Four young makers meet eachother in The Square2, a new full-length production of Scapino Ballet Rotterdam. -
Duplicate of Casablanca
Casablanca is a visual performance about passion, freedom and desire for a better world.