A Conversation with the First Black Ballerina to Lead the Pacific Northwest Ballet’s The Nutcracker

by Sherrell DorseySamrawit Saleem Angela Sterling.
Samrawit Saleem is refreshingly sharp and decisive to be just shy of 12 years old. She’s tall for her age, slender but strong, and typically styles her hair in braids, away from her face, which wears a bright smile as she glides across the stage as the first Black ballerina to dance the lead in the Pacific Northwest Ballet’s production of The Nutcracker.
Her journey to the lead role of one of Seattle’s most well-attended holida