Dancing with the National Ballet of Canada for over 20 years, Rex Harrington has grown to be a Canadian icon and hero for many dreaming dancers.
Rex Harrington is from rural Ontario and through is natural talents and charismatic stage presence, he has gained the respect of many and his story has become one in which many have come to look up to in hopes of achieving as much as he has in his career.
Harrington had only started dancing and training at the age of fourteen, and from there his abilities and talents soared into a great principal ballet dancer. Upon entrance into the National Ballet School at age fourteen, it was dually noted by the choreographers and directors that Rex Harrington would never be a mere chorous dancer in the background, but that he was one to be placed in the spotlight. Finally in 1983, Rex joined the National Ballet of Canada after only seven years of training with the National Ballet School. Joined with his grandeur stage presence, Harrington's partnering skills left his partner ballerinas feeling secure and provided them with an environment for them to do their job. It is an interesting thing being a male dancer - in the Western world, it is traditional in this patriarchal society for a male to appear masculine and strong, and any sign of emotion is translated into a a public view of vulnerability and weakness. But in the dancing world, a moment where a man shows sensitivity and emotion is admired and is praised. Dance is about showing emotion through movement and anatomical lines. When men achieve this transcendence of emotion on stage, their abilities as a dancer are cherished by their company and their audiences. For Rex Harrington, he has achieved this transcendence on stage. During his first year at the National Ballet of Canada, Rex Harrington was already cast in a principal role opposite the prima ballerina Karen Kain in Oiseaux Exotiques. From them on, he was cast in outstanding principal roles and finally in 1988, Rex Harrington was promoted to Principal Dancer at the National Ballet of Canada. Rex Harrington and Karen Kain danced together on center stage in National Ballet of Canada productions till Kain's retirement in 1997. Together they became the ballerina sweethearts of Canada, greatly inseparable when performing. Yet throughout the years, Rex Harrington has also partnered some of the world's greatest prima ballerinas such as Ekaterina Maximova, Carla, Fracci, Alessandra Ferri, and Evelyn Hart.
Along with his dance career on the stage came many opportunities in other medias. Such as film where he starred in the film adaptation of The Four Seasons and his exemplary performance gained his much positive critique in his acting abilities. This led to roles in many TV appearances such as Queer as Folk and Karen Kain: Dancing in the Moment, along with many many other cameos.
In 2002, Rex Harrington was invited to perform for Queen Elizabeth II as part of her Jubilee Anniversary , which came as a great honour for the seasoned dancer. Finally in 2004, Rex Harrington retired being Principal Dancer at the National Ballet of Canada, but it wasn't long after in 2005 when he was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame. 2006 was a great year for Harrington, as he was given honorary doctorate by York University, made Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and gained his current position at the National Ballet of Canada as Artist-in-Residence where he is reunited with his former dancer partner Karen Kain as she heads the Ballet Company as Artistic Director.
Rex Harrington's achievements thus far have been immense and yet he is still continuing to build is resume in the dancing world. Proving that even though your retirement in dance has come, you do not have to end your dancing career. Harrington is still greatly involved in the dance world and hopefully audiences will see more and more of him as he continues to be an artist in dance.
