Campanini, Barbara (1721–1799)

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Campanini, Barbara (1721–1799)

Italian ballerina. Name variations: La Barbarina; Barberina Campanini; Countess de Campanini or Comtesse de Campanini. Born in Parma, Italy, in 1721; died in Germany on June 7, 1799; studied with Rinaldi Fossano, a Neapolitan comic dancer; married Carlo Luigi Cocceji also known as Charles-Louis de Cocceji (son of Frederick the Great's chancellor), in 1749 (separated 1759, divorced 1788).

Barbara Campanini arrived in France at age 16 and soon became the mistress of the Prince de Carignan, inspector general of the Paris Opéra. Two years later, in July 1739, she made her debut there in Les Fêtes d'Herbe, ou Les Tal ents Lyriques. With Marie-Anne Cupis de Camargo retired and Marie Sallé about to withdraw, it was an auspicious time. Successful in her Paris debut, Campanini next ap peared in Zaide, Reine de Grenade, and Momus Amoureux. Known for her precision, elevation, and the acrobatic style of the Italian school, she executed her entrechat huit with ease. La Barbarina was soon adored and spoiled, and just as soon was said to be demanding.

Engaged for Covent Garden, she made her first appearance on October 25, 1740, and became an immediate favorite of the royal family: George II and Caroline of Ansbach and the princesses Amelia Sophia (1711–1786), Caroline Elizabeth (1713–1757), and Louise of England (1724–1751). For the next year, Campanini made a number of appearances at Covent Garden, Académie Royal, Versailles, and the Smock Alley Theatre in Dublin; she also became the mistress of Lord Arundel, the Marquis de Thebouville, and the Duc de Durfort. The French sent their chief designer Jean-Nicolas Servandoni to England to fetch her back, but when she arrived in France, she was quickly apprised of the ascent of Marianne Cochois in the eyes of the new director. Campanini returned to England for another 50 performances.

Frederick the Great, determined to foster an opera company to rival that of France, engaged Barbara Campanini as première danseuse for the 1744 season. Campanini was inaugurating a new affair with Lord Stuart Mackenzie, however, and was just as determined not to arrive on the stipulated date; she had to be escorted from the Austrian border to Berlin under guard. By the time she made her debut on May 13, all was forgiven. Frederick backed her with a corps de ballet and a three-year contract with the proviso that she was not to marry. The 23-year-old La Barbarina was the hit of Berlin and granted the title, Comtesse de Campanini. By then, she was also Frederick's mistress as well as the secret wife of the son of the king's chancellor, Charles-Louis de Cocceji. Campanini eventually separated from her count but, with Frederick's approval, kept her title and settled down for a quiet life, endowing a convent for impoverished women, the Poor Ladies of Good Birth, and becoming its prioress until her death on June 7, 1799. Marianne Cochois filled the void for Frederick and would be Berlin's esteemed ballerina for the next ten years.