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Documents for "Dance: Biographies":
  • Ailey, Alvin, Jr. 1931-89, American modern dancer and choreographer, b. Rogers, Tex. Ailey studied in Los Angeles with Lester Horton , whose strong, dramatic style and views about multiracial casting influenced his choreography and artistic direction. He moved to New York in 1954, where he studied dance with Martha Graham and Charles Weidman and acting with Stella Adler. In 1958 he formed his own company, the American Dance Theater, which, multiracial since 1963, has been internationally acclaimed and has brought recognition to many...
  • Alonso, Alicia (Alicia Martinez) , 1921-, Cuban ballerina and choreographer, b. Havana. Alonso danced in Broadway musicals before becoming a soloist with several leading companies, including the American Ballet Theatre, in 1939...
  • Ashley, Merrill 1950-, American ballerina, b. St. Paul, Minn. as Linda Michelle Merrill. She studied (1964-67) at the School of American Ballet, joining the parent New York City Ballet (NYCB) in 1967 and becoming...
  • Ashton, Sir Frederick 1904-88, British choreographer and dancer, b. Guayaquil, Ecuador. He grew up in Peru and was drawn to dance after seeing (1917) a performance by Anna Pavlova there. Traveling to London in the early 1920s, he studied dance with Léonide Massine and Marie Rambert, staged his first work there in 1926, and danced (1928) with Ida Rubinstein's experimental troupe in Paris. Ashton joined the Vic-Wells Ballet, later the Sadler's Wells Ballet (now the Royal Ballet ), in 1935 as chief choreographer, and later became associate director and then director of the company. Many of his ballets were created for its prima ballerina, Margot Fonteyn. Ashton is largely responsible for the elegantly reserved style of English classical dance, and his mature works are noted for their lyricism, quiet charm, wit, and precision. They include abstract...
  • Astaire, Fred 1899-1987, American dancer, actor, and singer, b. Omaha, Nebr., as Frederick Austerlitz. After 1911 he and his sister Adele formed a successful Broadway vaudeville team. After his sister retired,...
  • Béjart, Maurice 1927-, French ballet dancer and opera director. After studying in Marseilles, Paris, and London, he danced and choreographed for the Royal Swedish Ballet and the Ballets de l'Étoile before forming...
  • Balanchine, George 1904-83, American choreographer and ballet dancer, b. St. Petersburg, Russia, as Georgi Balanchivadze. The son of a composer, Balanchine attended the Imperial Ballet School, St. Petersburg, and...
  • Baryshnikov, Mikhail 1948-, Russian-American dancer and choreographer, b. Riga, Latvia (then in the USSR). He studied in Riga and performed with the Kirov Ballet (1966-74). Although highly respected and extremely popular...
  • Bausch, Pina 1940-, German dancer and choreographer. After training with Kurt Jooss , she studied in New York with Antony Tudor , Paul Taylor , and Paul Sanasardo. In 1973 she assumed the post of ballet master of the Wuppertal State Opera Dance Theatre. She became known for her rather bleak vision of humanity and its power struggles, her...
  • Bournonville, Auguste 1805-79, Danish dancer, choreographer, and teacher. Bournonville studied in Copenhagen with his father Antoine, the ballet master, and in Paris with Auguste Vestris. He joined the Royal Danish...
  • Brown, Trisha 1936-, American modern dancer and choreographer, b. Aberdeen, Wash. After studying dance at Mills College (B.A., 1958), she moved to New York, where, as a founding member (1962) of the innovative...
  • Bruhn, Erik 1929-86, Danish ballet dancer, b. Copenhagen. Bruhn joined the Royal Danish Ballet in 1947 and became a soloist there in 1949. He was widely regarded as one of the world's foremost dancers,...
  • Castle, Vernon, and Irene Foote 1893-1969, husband-and-wife dance team. Vernon Castle was an English dancer, who studied civil engineering before turning to the stage and making his debut in 1907. In 1911, he married Irene Foote,...
  • Cunningham, Merce (Mercier Philip Cunningham), 1919-, American modern dancer and choreographer, b. Centralia, Wash. Cunningham studied with Martha Graham and was a soloist in her company from 1940 to 1955. He presented his first work in 1942 and formed his own company in 1953, beginning to create innovative dances to the music of avant-garde...
  • d'Amboise, Jacques 1934-, American dancer and choreographer, b. Dedham, Mass. D'Amboise became a soloist with the New York City Ballet in 1953. He is best known for his roles in such distinctly American dance works...
  • Danilova, Alexandra 1904?-97, Russian-American ballerina. She entered (1923) the Imperial Ballet School, St. Petersburg, was a member (1924-29) of Diaghilev 's Ballet Russe, and prima ballerina (1938-58) of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. She toured with her own company and, after retiring, lectured, choreographed, and taught dance. She taught at the...
  • de Mille, Agnes (Agnes George de Mille) , 1905-93, American choreographer and dancer, b. New York City; granddaughter of Henry George , daughter of playwright director W. C. de Mille, and niece of Cecil B. De Mille...
  • Diaghilev, Sergei Pavlovich 1872-1929, Russian ballet impresario and art critic, grad. St. Petersburg Conservatory of Music, 1892. In 1898 he founded an influential journal, Mir Iskusstva [The World of Art]. He took a company of Russian dancers to Paris (1909) and, with the assistance of the painters L. N. Bakst and Aleksandr Benois and the choreographer Michel Fokine , founded Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, a troupe that was to revolutionize the world of dance. Diaghilev's productions were based on the principles of asymmetry and perpetual motion; both music and...
  • Dolin, Sir Anton 1904-83, English ballet dancer and choreographer, originally named Patrick Healey-Kay. Dolin joined Diaghilev's Ballet Russe in 1921, becoming a principal danseur in 1924. Leaving the company in...
  • Duncan, Isadora 1878-1927, American dancer, b. San Francisco. She had little success in the United States when she first created dances based on Greek classical art. But in Budapest (1903), Berlin (1904), and...
  • Dunham, Katherine 1909?-2006, American dancer, choreographer, and anthropologist, b. Chicago. She studied anthropology at the Univ. of Chicago, where she received a B.A. and Ph.D. and began her research into dances...
  • Eglevsky, André 1917-77, Russian-American dancer; b. Moscow. He trained in France and made his debut (1931) in London. Eglevsky danced (1939-42) with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and was (1951-58) premier...
  • Elssler, Fanny 1810-84, Austrian dancer. The youngest daughter of Johann Elssler, copyist and valet of Haydn, she made her debut (1833) in London. She danced at the Paris Opéra (1834-39) and in London (1838-40)...
  • Fagan, Garth 1940-, Jamaican-American dancer and choreographer. Jamaican-born, he studied with Ivy Baxter and left the island to dance with her company. Settling (1960) in Detroit, he attended Wayne State Univ...
  • Farrell, Suzanne 1945-, American ballet dancer, b. Cincinnati, Ohio, as Roberta Sue Ficker. After studying in her hometown and at the School of American Ballet, she joined the New York City Ballet. Balanchine , recognizing the emotional depth of her performances, created several roles for her in Movements for Piano and Orchestra, Meditation (1963), and Don Quixote (1965). From 1970 to 1974 she was a member of Béjart 's Ballet of the 20th Century. In 1974 she returned to the New York City Ballet, where she resumed her role as Balanchine's muse and danced in many of his works including Schumann's Davidsbundlertanze and Tizane as well as in Jerome Robbins 's Concerto in G and others. Farrell became a teacher at the company after her retirement in 1989. Her strained relations with City Ballet's director, her former partner Peter Martins , ultimately ended in her dismissal in 1993. Since then she has taught Balanchine's ballets, technique, and philosophy to dance companies throughout the world. In 1999, Farrell formed a chamber...
  • Fokine, Michel 1880-1942, Russian-American choreographer and ballet dancer, b. Russia. He studied at the Imperial Ballet School (1889-98) and danced at the Maryinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg. In 1905 he created Le Cygne (The Dying Swan) for Pavlova to music of Saint-Saëns. He accompanied Sergei Diaghilev to Paris in 1909 and was choreographer for his company until 1914. Fokine, considered the founder of modern ballet, based his choreography on the old system of training but eliminated rigid...
  • Fonteyn, Dame Margot 1919-91, English ballerina. Fonteyn was for many years prima ballerina assoluta of the Royal Ballet. Her original name was Margaret Hookham. In 1934 she joined the Sadler's Wells Ballet School, and in the same year she made her debut as a soloist. She became prima ballerina of the Vic-Wells...
  • Fosse, Bob (Robert Louis Fosse) , 1927-87, American choreographer and director, b. Chicago. Fosse first appeared on Broadway in Dance Me a Song (1950). He choreographed dances for The Pajama Game (1954),...
  • Fuller, Loie 1862-1928, American dancer and theatrical innovator, b. Fullersburg, Ill., as Mary Louise Fuller. She began her career as a child, performing in burlesque, vaudeville, the circus, plays, and other...
  • Graham, Martha 1894-1991, American dancer, choreographer, and teacher, b. Pittsburgh. Her family moved from Allegheny, Pa., to Santa Barbara, Calif., when she was 14. After 1916, Graham attended the Denishawn...
  • Greco, José 1918-2001, Spanish-American dancer and choreographer, b. Italy. Greco emigrated to the United States as a child. He first appeared as a professional dancer in New York in Carmen in 1937, dancing thereafter in nightclubs and resorts, in films, and in touring ballet companies. In 1947 he organized his own company, Ballets y Bailes de España. Greco was noted for his fiery yet...
  • Helpmann, Sir Robert 1909-1986, Australian dancer and choreographer. He danced as a principal (1933-50) with Sadler's Wells Ballet (now the Royal Ballet ), often partnering with Margot Fonteyn. His works as a choreographer...
  • Horton, Lester 1906-53, American modern dancer, choreographer, and teacher, b. Indianapolis. Moving to California in 1928, Horton formed his own company in Los Angeles and also performed in theater, films, and...
  • Humphrey, Doris 1895-1958, American modern dancer and choreographer, b. Oak Park, Ill. Humphrey was a featured soloist with the Denishawn Company until 1927. She then formed her own company with Charles Weidman,...
  • Ivanov, Lev 1834-1901, Russian dancer, teacher, choreographer, and ballet-master. Ivanov was assistant to chief ballet-master Marius Petipa at the Imperial St. Petersburg Theatres and was instrumental in the...
  • Jamison, Judith 1944-, American dancer and choreographer, b. Philadelphia. She studied ballet, tap, jazz, and modern dance, and made her debut with the American Ballet Theatre in 1964. She is best known for her...
  • Jones, Bill T. (William Tass Jones), 1952-, American dancer and choreographer, b. Bunnell, Fla. A gay African American who has experienced dual prejudices, he has often brilliantly transformed his anger and...
  • Jooss, Kurt 1901-79, German dancer, producer, and choreographer. Jooss was a student of Rudolf von Laban and was influenced by Émile Jacques-Dalcroze. The Green Table (1932), his most famous ballet, was an expressionistic view of the origins of war. Leaving Germany after the rise of Hitler, he worked in England with his Ballets Jooss and toured in many European...
  • Karsavina, Tamara 1885-1978, Russian prima ballerina. Karsavina was trained in the Imperial Theatre School and the Maryinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, making her debut at the latter in 1902. At its inception in...
  • Kaye, Nora (Nora Koreff), 1920-87, American ballerina, b. New York City. Kaye studied with Michel Fokine and Antony Tudor. She joined the Ballet Theatre in 1940 and scored a major triumph in 1942 in Pillar...
  • Kelly, Gene 1912-96, American dancer, choreographer, movie actor, and director, b. Pittsburgh. Kelly started dancing on Broadway in 1938 and first gained fame in the title role of the Broadway musical Pal Joey...
  • Kirstein, Lincoln 1907-96, American dance and theater executive and writer, b. Rochester, N.Y. One of the most significant figures in American ballet, Kirstein was cofounder of the American Ballet and the School of...
  • Laban, Rudolf von 1879-1958, Slovakian dancer, choreographer, and dance theorist. After studying in Paris and performing in N Africa, Germany, and Austria, he founded (1910) a dance school in Munich; Mary Wigman was one of his early students. He founded schools bearing his name all over Europe during the 1920s. In 1930 he was appointed director of the Allied State Theaters in Berlin, but was forced to...
  • Lang, Pearl 1922-, American dancer and choreographer, b. Chicago. Lang was a soloist with Martha Graham's company (1942-52) before forming her own company in 1952. As a dancer and choreographer she was noted...
  • Lifar, Serge 1905-86, Russian dancer, choreographer, director, teacher, and dance historian, b. Kiev. Lifar studied briefly with Bronislava Nijinska, but he was primarily self-taught. In 1923 he joined the...
  • Limón, José (José Arcadio Limón) , 1908-72, American modern dancer, choreographer, and teacher known for powerfully masculine dancing and dramatic choreography. He was born in Culiacán, Mexico, and his family settled in the United...
  • Makarova, Natalia 1940-, Russian ballet dancer, b. Leningrad (now St. Petersburg). She studied at the Choreographic School in her native city, graduating in 1959, and joined the Kirov Ballet. During her career there (1959-70) she won acclaim for her superb technique and her ability to capture character in such classical ballets as Giselle (probably her most famous role), Swan Lake, and Sleeping Beauty. In London (1970) on one of Kirov's European tours, Makarova, citing a need for artistic freedom, announced her intention to stay in the West. Later that year she joined the American Ballet Theatre , where she danced both classical and contemporary works, and in 1974 first staged La Bayadère. During the 1970s and 80s, she also performed as a guest artist with several European companies. In 1980 she founded her own group, with whom, for a season, she presented a variety of works...
  • Markova, Dame Alicia 1910-2004, English ballerina. Her original name was Lilian Alicia Marks. Markova joined Diaghilev 's Ballet Russe in 1924 and, in 1931, the Vic-Wells Ballet (now the Royal Ballet ), becoming its first prima ballerina in 1933. In 1935 she formed a company with Anton Dolin. After appearing (1938-41) with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo she danced with Ballet Theatre (1941-44) and other American ballet companies. She worked again with Dolin from 1949 to 1952 in their...
  • Martins, Peter 1946-, Danish ballet dancer and choreographer. He studied at the School of the Royal Danish Ballet and performed with its company (1965-69). In 1969 he joined the New York City Ballet , where he danced...
  • Massine, Léonide 1896-1979, American choreographer and ballet dancer, b. Russia. Massine attended the Imperial Ballet School, St. Petersburg, and became principal dancer and choreographer for Diaghilev 's Ballet Russe...
  • Massinger, Philip 1583-1640, English dramatist, b. Salisbury. He studied at Oxford (1602-6) but left without a degree, apparently to go to London to write plays. A prolific writer, Massinger wrote more than 40...
  • Mitchell, Arthur 1934-, American dancer, b. New York City. Mitchell studied in New York City and appeared on Broadway and with various companies at home and abroad. He joined the New York City Ballet in 1956,...
  • Moiseyev, Igor Alexsandrovich 1906-, Russian dancer and choreographer. He was a soloist with the Bolshoi Theatre (1924-29) and ballet master there (1930-39). In 1937 he organized the Moiseyev Dance Company, a ballet-trained...
  • Morris, Mark 1956-, American dancer and choreographer, b. Seattle, Wash. After training in Balkan folk dance, flamenco, and ballet, he went on to dance for Eliot Feld, Laura Dean, and Lar Lubovitch. His own...
  • Nijinska, Bronislava 1891-1972, Russian ballet dancer and choreographer; sister of Vaslav Nijinsky. She studied at the Imperial Ballet School in St. Petersburg and then joined the Maryinsky Theatre. In 1909, she moved to Diaghilev 's Ballet Russe, where she danced in the entire repertory. Although she left the company to teach during World War I, she returned in 1921 as a choreographer. She later choreographed for numerous...
  • Nijinsky, Vaslav 1890-1950, Russian ballet dancer and choreographer; brother of Bronislava Nijinska. Nijinsky is widely considered the greatest dancer of the 20th cent. and was ballet's first modernist choreographer. He entered the Imperial Ballet School, St. Petersburg, in 1900 and made his...
  • Nikolais, Alwin 1910-93, American dancer and choreographer, b. Southington, Conn. Nikolais became director of his own dance company in New York City in 1949. He made ingenious use of colors, lighting, and sound...
  • Nureyev, Rudolf 1938-93, Russian ballet dancer, b. near Irkutsk, Siberian USSR (now Russia). Nureyev studied in Ufa and Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), and in 1958 he became a soloist with the Kirov Ballet. In 1961 he defected from the Soviet Union while on tour in Paris. The leading classical ballet dancer of his generation, Nureyev was noted for his overpowering stage presence and his exceptionally...
  • Pavlova, Anna Matveyevna 1881-1931, Russian ballerina. In 1892 she entered the Imperial Ballet School, St. Petersburg. She made her debut in 1899 at the Maryinsky Theatre, but it was only after tours to Scandinavia (1907)...
  • Perrot, Jules 1810-92, French dancer and choreographer, b. Lyons. Perrot studied with Auguste Vestris and Salvatore Vigano. He gained fame as a dancer before turning to choreography. From 1848 to 1859 he worked...
  • Petipa, Marius 1822-1910, French dancer and choreographer, b. Marseilles. Petipa rose to prominence at the Imperial Theatre in St. Petersburg. He was the principal creator of the modern classical ballet...
  • Petit, Roland 1924-, French dancer and choreographer, b. Villemoble. Petit joined the Paris Opéra company at 15 and in 1948 founded Les Ballets de Paris de Roland Petit. His best-known work, Carmen (1949), set to music from Georges Bizet's opera, was created for his company, with Renée (Zizi) Jeanmaire, who later (1954) became his wife, in the title role. Other well-known early works include Le Jeune homme et la mort (1946) and Ballabile (1950). Petit later turned to less classical forms, such as choreographing films, e.g., Hans Christian Andersen (1952) and Daddy Long Legs (1955), and music hall revues (1956-61). He returned to ballet in the 1960s when commissioned to present the Festivals populaires de ballet at the Chaillot theater in France. In 1972 he founded the...
  • Plisetskaya, Maya 1925-, Russian dancer. Pliesetskaya became a soloist with the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow on graduating from its school in 1943. She soon gained recognition as one of the world's foremost...
  • Rambert, Dame Marie 1888-1982, a founder of the English ballet, b. Warsaw as Miriam Rambam. Trained by Jacques Dalcroze in eurythmics, Rambert joined the Diaghilev Ballet Russe as an instructor in 1913. She danced...
  • Robbins, Jerome 1918-98, American choreographer and dancer, b. New York City as Jerome Wilson Rabinowitz. Robbins began his career dancing in musical comedy (1937). In 1940 he joined the Ballet Theatre and in 1948...
  • Sokolova, Lydia 1896-1974, English ballerina, b. Wanstead, as Hilda Munnings. Trained at Stedman's Academy in London, Sokolova joined the Diaghilev Ballets Russes in 1913 and became the company's principal...
  • St. Denis, Ruth 1877-1968, American dancer, b. Newark, N.J., whose name was originally Ruth Dennis. After her debut (c.1893) she toured with David Belasco. In 1906 she began her recitals of highly imaginative and...
  • Taglioni, Maria 1804-84, Italian ballerina, b. Stockholm. Taglioni is considered the first and foremost ballerina of the romantic period. She made her debut in Vienna in 1822 in a ballet created for her by her...
  • Tallchief, Maria 1925-, American ballerina, b. Fairfax, Okla. Tallchief, of Osage descent, was trained both as a pianist and as a dancer. Deciding on a career in ballet, she studied under Bronislava Nijinska , Ernest Belcher, and George Balanchine , whom she later married. She performed with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo from 1942 to 1947, when she joined the Ballet Society (later the New York City Ballet). Through 18 years as that...
  • Taylor, Paul 1930-, American modern dance choreographer, b. Pittsburgh. Taylor trained as an artist before he received scholarships to study dance. In 1953 he made his debut with the Merce Cunningham company and...
  • Tetley, Glen 1926-, American modern dancer and choreographer, b. Cleveland, Ohio. He studied in New York City with Hanya Holm and danced with Martha Graham 's company. He danced (1962-65) with the Netherlands Dance...
  • Tharp, Twyla 1941-, American dancer and choreographer, b. Portland, Ind. An eclectic, innovative choreographer and dancer, she danced (1963-65) with Paul Taylor. For more than 20 years she had her own dance companies (1967-85, 1986-88), but in 1988 she joined the American Ballet Theatre (ABT) as an artistic associate and until 1991 was one of the company's two resident choreographers. After leaving ABT she produced two pick-up troupes, including a 1992-93 tour starring herself and...
  • Tudor, Antony 1909-87, English choreographer and dancer. Tudor went to the United States at the invitation of the Ballet Theatre, New York City (1939); he danced leading roles and created ballets for several...
  • Tune, Tommy 1939-, American dancer, choreographer, and director, b. Wichita Falls, Tex. An unusually lanky 6 ft 6 in., Tune began his Broadway dancing career in the chorus of several mid-1960s musicals, then...
  • Ulanova, Galina 1910-98, Russian ballerina, b. St. Petersburg. Ulanova made her debut at the Kirov Ballet (1928), where she danced until 1944. That year she became prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow,...
  • Valois, Dame Ninette de 1898-2001, English ballet director, b. County Wicklow, Ireland. She was originally named Edris Stannus. After attaining distinction as a dancer, most notably in Diaghilev 's Ballets Russes (1923-26), she became choreographic director of both the Abbey Theatre and the Old Vic Theatre in 1926, the year she founded the Academy of Choreographic Art. With dancers from the...
  • Vestris, Gaetan 1729-1808, Italian-French classical dancer, b. Florence. Vestris was one of the greatest dancers of the 18th cent. Born of an Italian theatrical family, he studied dance with Louis Dupré at the...
  • Villella, Edward 1936-, American ballet dancer, b. Long Island, N.Y. Villella studied at George Balanchine's School of American Ballet, joining the New York City Ballet in 1957. He soon became a principal dancer...
  • Weidman, Charles 1901-75, American modern dancer and choreographer, b. Lincoln, Neb. Weidman performed with the troupe formed by Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn from 1920 to 1927, when he and Doris Humphrey left to form their own company and school. He created many dances that combined abstract movement with gestures based on his own brilliant mime technique. After starting his own company and school...
  • Wigman, Mary 1886-1973, German dancer, choreographer, and teacher. After studying with Rudolf von Laban , Wigman performed in Germany and opened her own school in Dresden (1920). She became the most influential German exponent of expressive movement and toured extensively. Her school, which had...
  • Youskevitch, Igor 1912-94, Russian-American ballet dancer. He joined (1938) the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and became premier danseur. Youskevitch danced with the Ballet Theatre in New York from 1946 to 1955,...
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