Lisa Drake graduated from The National Ballet School of Canada followed by an apprenticeship with Canada´s National Ballet (NBOC). Influenced by Daniel Lewis' mentorship and the work of José Limón, Lisa shifted her career path. At 18, she landed a position in the prestigious Nederlands Dans Theater 2, later continuing into the main company, NDT1. She contributed to creations with artistic director Jiří Kylián, Ohad Naharin, Nacho Duato, Hans van Manen, Johan Inger, also working closely with William Forsythe and Mats Ek.
Lisa joined Cullberg Ballet in 2001 as dancer and eventually became rehearsal director, collaborating closely with Deborah Hay, Édouard Lock (LaLaLa Human Steps), Benoit Lachambre, Stijn Celis, and Mats Ek. She has set pieces of Stijn Celis, Johan Inger and Mats Ek on companies Ballet am Rein, the Gothenburg Opera Ballet and Dresden Semper Oper.
In 2019 Lisa performed with Jefta van Dinther´s production The Quiet. Since 2020 Lisa works as head of contemporary profile at The Royal Swedish Ballet School, Stockholm.
In 1989, Lisa performed at the Royal Swedish Opera as a guest in Jiří Kylián's Stoolgame. In 2025, she dances on the same stage in Mats Ek's A Cup of Coffee.
