Sandy Delasalle-Scannella

MUM | PRINCIPAL BALLERINA | WIFE | ARTISTIC ASSOCIATE |PRINCIPLAL BALLET MISTRESS | COACH AND MENTOR | CHOREOGRAPHER | ART AND PEOPLE LOVER

How many identities do you have?

·      Mum

Proud mum of a beautiful, 16-year-old son. Despite my busy working lifestyle, I cherish every moment I have with him. He is my most important and greatest achievement. I wish for him to find his passion, and will support him every step of the way.

·      Principal Ballerina

This is who I’ve been for the past thirty years and my greatest passion. This is who I am, and who I always will be deep inside. I’ve travelled the world with this profession, worked with the most talented people in the industry, and shared the most profound emotions. Leaving my family for this passion was difficult, but with their support, I was able to achieve my dreams, and I am grateful for that. Becoming principal ballerina at the age of 21 was definitely a challenge. It made me have great responsibilities from a very young age and was only the start of my growth to becoming who I am today.

·      Wife

I met my husband on the stages of Dusseldorf. I can still remember seeing him jumping on stage, and thinking of how amazingly talented he was. He fairly quickly noticed that I was watching him, and approached me. A few months later, after dancing Romeo and Juliet together (him being Romeo and me Juliet), we got married. This was now 22 years ago.

·      Artistic Associate

I am proud to be leading the West Australian Ballet alongside my husband, Aurelien Scannella. Although our very contrasting character, we have the same passion, the same artistic vision, and the same taste for beauty, artistry and excellence. It can be challenging at times, to work with your husband, but we know each other so well from dancing together for so many years in the past. Having our own company is a dream come true. In one of the most isolated cities, we are able to bring the world to Perth. As an artistic associate, I take responsibility when my husband is away. I take part in developing the repertoire and goals for the company.

·      Principal Ballet Mistress

I am in charge of the dancers of the company, but my main focus are the principals and soloists. I teach and re-stage ballet and make sure that the dancers’ technique and most importantly their artistry. I also take part of the recruitment process of the company for future and upcoming artists.

·      Coach and Mentor

Working with artists is something very special. Having such a long career myself, and starting at a very young age, I definitely know how the mind and body are related. I focus on their personalities and target their needs. I make sure that they are ready for the challenges of the stage, and also build a trustful relationship for them to be the best of themselves.

·      Choreographer

Although this is not my principle role, I’ve created two full-length ballets (The Nutcracker and Giselle), two works for our Genesis season, and recently, my most innovative project, CoVid Lab.

·      Art and people lover

I love to see beauty and excellence. I get most of my motivation from passionate and beautiful people. My philosophy is to always find the positive side of everything around me – this is how I overcome challenges.

Tell us a bit about your story and how you’ve got to where you are now professionally?

For as long as I can remember, I’ve always wanted to become a ballerina. Listening to music has always made me happy and feel amazing. I always needed to express my emotions. I was a very shy girl, but whilst dancing, I felt free. I’ve had the most amazing family, who always supported me to achieve my dreams. This led me to start my career very young. However ready and determined. I became the muse of a world-class choreographer. By creating most of his ballets on me, and being in this artistic partnership, I became a very creative and confident artist. I was invited to many different companies across the world and took part in many galas; connecting with amazing people. My dream was always to have my own company, and this wish came true in 2013. I will always remember the time when my husband told us he had a skype meeting with Australia during our holidays in Corsica. It felt surreal and unexpected. I guess faith led us to a place we were meant to be.

As a female, what has been your greatest challenge in your career/business?

As the clock is ticking, and whilst being a prima ballerina, the decision of having a child is a challenge. In a sense that you don’t know if it means the end of your career. Even though I thought it was the right time, being at the peak of my career and having a stable position, my pregnancy was a blessing but with unfortunate timing. The Deutsch Oper Berlin faced a financial crisis and forced closure upon the ballet sector. This left my husband and I unemployed in what was the most beautiful time of our life. Nevertheless, it let me spend more time with my newborn son. After a two-year long break, my ballerina life called me back.

What has been the hardest personal challenge you have faced in life so far?

I think I had 2 that are linked together. The first one being when I left my family at the age of 14 to pursue my passion; dance. Being far away from my family has been a part of my life for a long time. For my whole career, I’ve only been able to see my family once a year. The hardest challenge I’ve had to go through was the loss of my father. My son was only 9 months old at the time. I only had the last few months of my father’s life to spend time with him; which was the longest period I saw since I had left home. I’ll never forget his words when he said ‘Je t’ai pas assez vue’ – meaning I haven’t seen you enough. That is when I realised that by living my dream, I left my family behind. I guess that is just how life goes.

How have you grown as a person mentally, emotionally and spiritually since that challenge?

After the loss of my father, I went through a tough 2 years. I lost my job, lost my father, but I was now a mum. I knew that to be able to recover emotionally, I needed to dance. I started my career again which helped me to express all my feelings to stay strong for my son.  I only then realised that we are not here forever and I now enjoy every single day, and live the moment as it comes. I always believe that my father is always present, and looking after me. Now being even further away, in a completely different continent, the distance is even greater. Physically and mentally. I have my own family here in Australia; my son and my husband which I hold to be very close and important to me. Fortunately, with modern technology, I am able to connect with my family living in the south of France. I know that I am loved, and this gives me the greatest strength.

How do you plan to leave a mark in the world?

I have been travelling the world throughout my life, leaving a bit of myself everywhere. As a dancer, I was highly appreciated. Now to leave my mark, I like to think that faith led me to Australia and right now as a leader of West Australian Ballet alongside my husband Aurelien, we are bringing the world to Perth.  

To take over a company and making it like no other, to put my soul, passion, love, and knowledge, while still allowing myself to be vulnerable, is key for me to show my dancers. We are a family, and even more so now after these difficult times. We feel strong and ready for the world.