ELZA LEIMANE graduated from the Riga Choreography High School in 2001 and the same year joined the LNO Ballet Company. She also was the member of the European Youth Ballet (in 2000 and 2004). She complimented her education at Paris Conservatoire, Anaheim Ballet summer courses (USA), summer courses at the Vienna Conservatoire, training at the St. Petersburg Mariinsky Theatre, and Hamburg Ballet Company (Germany). In 2002 and 2003, Elza Leimane participated in Bartolin International Ballet Seminar (Denmark).
The ballerina won 3rd place at the Ballet Competition in Yalta (1998), the Best Young Dancer title in Rudolf Nuriev Ballet Competition and Diagilev Special Prize (Budapest), the 1st place at Vienna Ballet Competition (1999), diploma winner of the Eurovision Young Dancers Competition (1999). In 2005, she became a diploma winner at the New York International Ballet Competition. In 1998 and 1999, Elza Leimane received the Award of the Latvian Ministry of Culture. In 2005, she was awarded the Aldaris Annual prize as the Best ballet soloist, and Latvian Theatre Spēlmaņu nakts Prize as the Best Dancer of the Year for her interpretation of Giselle and Marquise de Merteuil in 2006. Elza Leimane was awarded the Latvijas Gāze Annual Opera Prize as the Best ballet soloist (2011). Elza Leimane received the Latvian Dance Award 2019-2021 as The Best Ballet Choreographer. In 2018 she received the prestigious Order of the Three Stars.
Elza Leimane has performed in Great Britain, Israel, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Holland, Germany, Luxemburg, Switzerland and other countries. In January 2009, Elza Leimane participated in the guest performances of the Ballet Russe as Giselle.
Elza Leimane's roles in LNO include the title roles in Romeo and Juliet, La Sylphide, Giselle, Kitri in Don Quixote, Katarina in The Taming of the Shrew, Gulnare and Odalisque in Le Corsaire, Ballerina in Petroushka, Tzarevna the Beautiful in Firebird, Ballerina in The Bright Stream, Odile in Swan Lake, Clara in Christian Spuck's Der Sandmann, Zarema in The Fountain of Bakhchisaray, Marquise de Merteuil in Les Liaisons Dangereuses.
Her roles with the Cape Town City Ballet include Juliet (Veronica Paeper's Romeo and Juliet) and Anna Glawari (Veronica Paeper's Merry Widow). She has also performed in gala concerts in Europe, the United States and South Korea, also having performed as a visiting performer with the European Youth Ballet company and Ulyana Lopatinka’s star troupes, and even as Giselle with the Ballet Russes in London. As a visiting performer in the Cape Town Ballet and Johannesburg Ballet troupes, she played the role of Kitri in their productions of Don Quixote.
In 2015 she received her degree in choreography from the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music. Her one-act Images of Presence was included in Unknown Territories (2015), but her choreographies Cattle and The Ballet of Unhatched Chicks were included in the on-act Pictures at an Exhibition. In collaboration with Raimonds Martinovs miniatures Gems (Concert for the 150th Anniversary of the LNO house) and Three (Latvijas Gāze Award 2011) were created. Elza Leimane is the choreographer of ballet one-acts Tell Me (No) Tales (2019) and Fellow Human (2021). Leimane's choreographies have been performed in Gala concerts in the USA, Germany, Estonia, Russia and varous international competitions.
Upcoming events
| Today, 19:00 | The Fountain of Bakhchisarai | Zarema |
| september 22, 18:00 | AT THE BLUE DANUBE | Franziska |
| october 16, 19:00 | Dracula | Mrs. Westenra |