Kendall Anna Swendsen
Kendall Anna was raised in Houston, Texas and first started sewing at the age of seven making pillows, cross stitch ornaments, and dresses for herself and others on her step mother’s sewing machine. She grew up dancing from a young age, mostly enjoying tap and jazz. After leaving her love for dancing behind in high school, she made her first tutu with the incredible Nina Reed in the Fall of 2018. It is during this semester that she found a new passion within sewing. In the Fall of 2019, she did a semester long internship at Halsey Onstage, a predominately dance based Costume Production company, where she worked for the brilliant Travis Halsey. She hopes to honor his memory by opening up her own business in the future. She graduated in May of 2021 with her BFA in Costume Construction from The Sargent Conservatory of Theatre Arts at Webster University where she received Magna Cum Laude Honors. She has spent the last three summers at the Santa Fe Opera working her way up quickly from Stitching Apprentice to most recently First Hand. Kendall Anna received her MFA in Costume Production from Carnegie Mellon University in 2024, where she was a recipient of the Bes Kimberly Fellowship and the Frank-Ratchye Further Fund Grant. During her graduate studies, she honed skills in couture hand sewing, delicate machine work, intricate hand-worked beading, and all forms of dance wear, with a particular passion for classical tutu-making techniques. Now based in New York City, Kendall is pursuing her dream of working on extravagant costumes across theater, opera, and dance.
Photo Credit: Louis Stein
Currently at New York City Ballet!
Fall 2019
Internship at Halsey Onstage
May 2021
Graduated with BFA in Costume Construction from The Conservatory of Theatre Arts at Webster University
*Magna Cum Laude Honors
Spring 2024
Graduated with MFA Costume Production from Carnegie Mellon University
*Bes Kimberly Fellowship Recipient
Frank Ratchye Further Fund Grant Recipient