Peggy Dolkas was born in Auburn, California and studied under Sheila Humphreys, former dancer and Ballet Mistress of The Royal Ballet of London. From 1996-2000, she trained at Canada’s National Ballet School in Toronto, graduating with Honors and earning the Peter Dwyer Scholarship Award and the Christopher Ondaatjie Ballet Prize.
Ms. Dolkas became a member of The National Ballet of Canada under the direction of James Kudelka and during that time she was chosen to represent Canada’s up-and coming talent in an exclusive performance for His Royal Highness, the Prince of Wales.
In 2003, Ms. Dolkas joined Ballet West and less than two years later she was promoted to Soloist and performed a multitude of principal roles including Aurora, Giselle, Odette/Odile, and Juliet, in the world premiere of Jonas Kåge’s Romeo and Juliet. She earned “Top 25 Dancers To Watch” around the world in the 2007 Issue of Dance Magazine.
Nevada Ballet Theatre in Las Vegas invited Ms. Dolkas to join the Artistic Staff as Ballet Mistress from 2013-2015, during which she assisted in the staging of numerous ballets alongside James Canfield, as well as collaborated with Cirque du Soleil in “A Choreographers’ Showcase.”
Ms. Dolkas joined the Ballet West Artistic Staff as Associate Director of Ballet West II from 2015-2019, assisting in the staging of several major ballets including John Cranko’s Romeo and Juliet, Frederick Ashton’s Cinderella, George Balanchine’s Jewels, Nicolo Fonte’s Piece of My Heart, William Christensen’s The Nutcracker, and Adam Sklute’s Swan Lake, and Sleeping Beauty, to name a few.
Ms. Dolkas has choreographed over thirty solos for the Youth America Grand Prix, all of which placed in the Top 12 Category for Contemporary Dance, including “Requiem”, for which she won “Best Choreography”. The Salt Lake City Arty’s Awards named her “Best Choreographer” for her work on Ballet West titled “Yes, But How Did You Get There?”
In addition, she has co-choreographed three original full-length productions with Pamela Robinson-Harris as part of the Ballet West’s Family Series: The Little Mermaid (2012), Aladdin (2013), and Beauty and the Beast (2016), which she also re-staged for performances by the Cincinnati Ballet and Longview Ballet Theatre. She received the Salt Lake City Arts’ Festival Dance Commission Award in 2018 for her work “Empatizzare.”
Ms. Dolkas most recently taught the company dancers of the Sacramento Ballet as well as the dancers in the Sacramento Ballet School, and is eagerly looking forward to joining the NCDC faculty in the fall.