Varna International Ballet Competition
The dancer most associated with the RWB has been Evelyn Hart; it also included many other notable dancers including Mikhail Baryshnikov. Born in Toronto, Ontario, in 1956, Hart made her professional debut with the RWB in 1976. In 1980, she was awarded the bronze medal at the World Ballet Concours in Japan, and the gold medal at the Varna International Ballet Competition where she also received the Exceptional Artistic Achievement Award. Both medals were awarded for her performance of Belong pas de deux, created by internationally acclaimed choreographer Norbert Vesak as part of his work "What To Do Till the Messiah Comes". Hart was awarded the Order of Canada in 1983. She left the RWB in 2005. David Peregrine, Hart's long-time partner, joined the Royal Winnipeg Ballet as a member of the corps in 1975 and became a soloist three years later and principal dancer in 1980; that year the pair both performed in Varna. Peregrine was made an officer of the Order of Canada in 1986.