About Adrienne
Kirov Academy full scholarship graduate Adrienne Canterna is the recipient of numerous national and international awards including winning the GOLD medal at the 1998 USA IBC at just 15 years old. Other prestigious awards include the Grishko Award of Excellence in Ballet, Teen Miss Dance of America and many more. Ms. Canterna is a proud brand ambassador for the global brand CAPEZIO. Adrienne tours the world as a dancer, choreographer & juror.
As a Principal guest ballerina she danced the roles of Gamzatti in "La Bayadere", the Sugar Plum Fairy in "The Nutcracker", and Kitri in "Don Quixote" with the UNIVERSAL BALLET in Seoul, South Korea under the direction of Oleg Vinogradov. She has also danced with the Washington Ballet and Complexions Contemporary Ballet in NYC where she was partnered by dance superstar Desmond Richardson. She has appeared in numerous galas worldwide including the "Vail Dance Festival", "Dance Open" in Russia, "Gala de Danza", "Dance Against Cancer" in NYC, the Ravello Festival in Italy, YAGP Mexico and "Les Gala des Etoiles" in Montreal where she performed "Le Corsaire" pas de duex with international ballet star, Carlos Acosta.
Adrienne appeared as a soloist in the PBS television tribute to opera star Placido Domingo, in a segment directed and choreographed by dance icon, Debbie Allen. She has been a guest performer on TV shows around the world including So You Think You Can Dance, Dance India Dance, Benissimo (Switzerland) and many more. Adrienne can be seen as a ballet soloist in the movie “STEP UP” starring Channing Tatum. Ms. Canterna has modeled for the athleisure brand MPG Sport was a featured dancer/model for an editorial in SELF magazine & German GLAMOUR. Adrienne was invited by VOGUE editor in chief Anna Wintour, to walk in the “Made for History” fashion show at NYFW.
Adrienne is the choreographer & co-creator of the international hit dance show "ROCK the Ballet". After touring over 30 countries & over 1 million tickets sold since 2008, RTB continues to wow audiences across the globe. In 2013 she created & choreographed the world premiere of “ROMEO & JULIET" in Europe to rave reviews from critics & audiences alike. In 2014, Adrienne became a Semi-Finalist on Season 9 of the hit TV show "America's Got Talent". During her run as Juliet on the West End in 2015, prestigious UK dance critic Graham Watts wrote "Adrienne created a ballet for the Snapchat age. Dancing as Juliet in her own choreography, Canterna’s exciting portrayal is delivered with a cocktail of personality and movement that mixed a quirky dollop of Lady Gaga, a touch of burlesque, the length of Sylvie Guillem’s limbs and the hyper-flexible spine of an Olympic gymnast".
In 2019, Ms. Canterna choreographed, directed & starred in the world premiere of “Rock the Ballet X”. Die Welt culture critic in Germany wrote “Adrienne Canterna’s spectacular and ingenious choreography rendered the audience breathless”. After its premiere 10 week European tour seen by over 50,000 fans, RTBX continues to tour Europe to sold out audiences.
Ms. Canterna is the Founder of SweetBird Productions and the Artistic Director of the SweetBird Summer Intensive (SBSI). Adrienne currently tours as a juror/master teacher with YAGP & REVEL. She also has taught & judged at ADC IBC, Ballet West Academy, University of the Arts, CityDance Conservatory, Cary Ballet Conservatory, artémotion, UNAM (Mexico), Joffrey Ballet School, Dance Masters of America & countless others around the world.
Adrienne has coached many students who have competed & advanced internationally in competition and has many students who are currently dancing professionally in companies & shows around the world. Adrienne proudly served on the Artistic Faculty of the Kirov Academy until its closing, where she taught ballet, contemporary & choreography. Her choreography has been performed by stars of Takarazuka (Japan) and many other dancers globally and her contemporary works have won numerous awards at national & international competitions including YAGP, Helsinki IBC, USA IBC and more.
Adrienne is married to Brandt Martínez & is the proud mother of Anami Halo and Vida Rain.