Artistic and Executive Director of Ballet Victoria since 2007, Montreal born Destrooper has built the company into a Canadian cultural asset by presenting full seasons, with four yearly productions, showcasing innovative and internationally-acclaimed works. 

Recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012, and the Paul Harris Fellowship, Destrooper has over three decades of experience from a successful international dance career working with world renowned directors, dancers and choreographers. Soloist with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet which he joined in 1993 upon graduation from the School’s Professional Division, he received the prestigious Prince Edward Award and the A. Spohr Scholarship. He was a principal dancer with Alberta Ballet and Oregon Ballet Theatre until 2007. Paul holds a BA from UVIC, and was twice the recipient of the A. Deloume Scholarship.

 Paul has created works, taught and coached for professional companies and schools including the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Oregon Ballet Theatre, NWPDP, Anchorage Ballet Theater, Evansville Dance Theater, Ballet Kelowna, Ballet Edmonton, OSDI, Pacific Opera Victoria, the Victoria’s Symphony, Intrepid Theatre, Victoria Conservatory of Music, ARC Dance, and ROMP. Destrooper’s choreography has been featured in four a Hallmark Movie of the Week. 

Paul’s choreography focuses on shaping seamless movements from the classical and contemporary vocabularies to reflect musicality and trigger emotion. His work is dramatic, inspiring, physical and often laced with a distinctive sense of humour. As Ballet Victoria’s main choreographer, he has choreographed over 40 works and 11 full-length ballets to glowing reviews from critics and audiences both in Canada, the USA and Mexico.