Dana Hanson began her ballet studies at the age of 11 and received her early training at the Pacific Northwest Ballet School in Seattle, Washington. At the age of 16 she moved to New York City to continue her training at the School of American Ballet.

In 1990, Ms. Hanson was invited to join the New York City Ballet. During her 16-year-long career with the Company, her repertoire included over 75 different ballets, primarily the works of George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins and Peter Martins. She danced featured roles in Balanchine’s Agon, Chaconne, Coppélia, The Four Temperments, La Valse, The Nutcracker, Stars & Stripes, and Swan Lake among others and originated roles in ballets by Robbins, Martins, Christopher Wheeldon, Eliot Feld, and Susan Stroman. Ms. Hanson toured with the Company to major cities throughout the world.

While still dancing in the NYCB, Ms. Hanson was a member of the guest faculty at the School of American Ballet, New York.

She appears in Suki Schorer’s book Suki Schorer on Balanchine Technique as a principal model and has also assisted Ms. Schorer in workshops and lectures on Balanchine technique in New York and Italy.

Upon retirement from NYCB in 2006, Ms. Hanson was invited to join the faculty of the Pacific Northwest Ballet School, Seattle. She teaches primarily advanced students in ballet technique, pointe, and variations and also stages Balanchine ballets for PNBS performances.

Ms. Hanson has been a guest teacher in the Ballet Department at Indiana University since 2012.