Róisín Whelan is a Choreographer and Movement Director based in Carlow, Ireland. Róisín works across Theatre, Opera and creating her own dance works in Ireland and abroad.
Theatre Credits as Movement Director and Choreographer include The Borrowers, Circle Mirror Transformation, and Movement Rehearsal Director for Fun Home at the Gate Theatre.
Opera Credits include Assistant Director for Falstaff (Glyndebourne, UK); Assistant Movement Director for Hansel and Gretel, Eugene Onegin, Festen (Royal Opera House, London); Der Freischutz and Madame Butterfly (Bregenz Festspiele, Austria); La Gioconda (Osterfestspiele, Salzburg).
In 2025, Róisín will be working alongside director Oliver Mears as Assistant Director on La Gioconda at Greek National Opera, Athens.
In the coming year she will be the Associate Director and Choreographer for Houston Grand Opera’s production of Hansel and Gretel and the Revival Choreographer for Samson et Delilah at the Royal Ballet and Opera, London.
Other credits as choreographer include Íomhá (Carlow Arts Festival/Arts Council Ireland); The Glasshouse (Ballet Ireland); Man Down (R.W.D./Arts Council Ireland); The Galaxy of Occupations (R.W.D./Dublin City Council/Tipperary Dance); The Tipsy Flamingo (Valencia Dancing Forward, Spain); and Parting Glass (University of Malta).
Róisín will be creating a new piece for the National Youth Ballet of Great Britain for their 2025/2026 season.
Film and TV credits include Choreographer for AMC Productions’ Moonhaven and Sanctuary; The Tourist (Season 2, BBC); Life/Time directed by Terence White (Arts Council Ireland Funded).
Credits as Irish language consultant include Reasons for Staying, The AIDS Plays Project at London Performance Studios.
Róisín was also a performer in Matthew Bourne’s Romeo and Juliet.
Róisín studied a BPA and MA in Contemporary Dance at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance, UK where she was awarded the Kathleen Tattersall Leadership Award upon graduating. Róisín has also been the recipient of multiple Arts Council Awards including Dance Bursaries, Project and Touring Awards to create her own work. She was awarded the prestigious PROPEL Award, a three-year award funded by the Strollers Network, Ireland’s largest consortium of Arts Centres and the Ballet Ireland’s Emerging Choreographer Award. Over the past three years Róisín has been awarded the HATCH Creation Award from Dance Ireland, Galway Dance Project and Dance Ireland Residency Awards, Shawbrook Residential Dance Company Space Award, Dance Ireland Regional Residency Awards and the Backstage Theatre Longford Activate Residency Award.
Róisín is Artistic Director of Róisín Whelan Dance.
