Paul De Strooper

Paul De Strooper took his first ballet class at the age of 22, and only a year later was accepted into the Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s Professional School. He has since performed with the RWB, the Alberta Ballet, and the Oregon Ballet Theatre.

Paul considers his many fellow performers, teachers, coaches and choreographers as true inspiration for continuing, and says many roles have been special because of who he danced with, world-class ballerinas like Tara Birtwhistle, Evelyn Hart and Kaori Nakamura.

“They have been muses and have pushed me to always go further technically and artistically than expected.”

Holding a B.A. in French Literature and Language from the University of Victoria, Paul is the recipient of the Prince Edward Award from RWB, and a two-time winner of the Arnold Spohr Scholarship.

“Ballet is extremely fulfilling to perform, to give yourself and receive freely, to share with all your heart and passion different stories, happy or tragic, simply through movement - through the visual expression of music.”

For the intensity of practice and performance, Paul enjoys the look and feel of MPG clothing, “Besides looking great, MPG is very comfortable - muscles stay warm, supple and ready for action.”

“Ballet possesses all the components I enjoy in life. It’s extremely physically demanding, it requires concentration; it has deep drama, and best of all, wonderful music. And,” Paul adds, “The company of beautiful, graceful women.