Woodward was born in Paris, to a French filmmaker father and a South African dancer mother, who had worked with choreographer Roland Petit.
[3] When she was fifteen, she was invited to attend a two-month program in scholarship, and perform at a showcase at Bolshoi Ballet Academy.
She originated a role in a ballet by Lauren Lovette during the New York Choreographic Institute, and graduated after two years of training.
Among the ballets she had dance featured roles whilst a soloist include Balanchine's Symphony in C,[1] "Emerald" from Jewels,[7] as Sugar Plum Fairy and Dewdrop in The Nutcracker,[8] Calliope in Apollo,[2] and Butterfly from A Midsummer Night's Dream,[9] Robbins' West Side Story Suite,[10] "Winter" from The Four Seasons, as Juliet in Martins' Romeo + Juliet,[2] as Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty,[11] Wheeldon's Mercurial Manoeuvres, Peck's Year of the Rabbit, The Times Are Racing and Principia,[12][13] and Ratmansky's Pictures at an Exhibition.
[1] Ballets she had since performed include Balanchine's La Valse, Sonatine, Duo Concertant, Haieff Divertimento and the Divertissement in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Robbins'The Four Seasons, Piano Pieces, Fancy Free and Rondo, as well as Ratmansky's Concerto DSCH.