Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo
Encyclopedia
Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo was a ballet company
created by members of the Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo in 1938 after Léonide Massine and René Blum had a falling-out with the co-founder Wassily de Basil (usually referred to as Colonel W. de Basil). De Basil then renamed his rival company The Original Ballet Russe
.
and Tamara Toumanova
joined the company as principle dancers.
Blum was arrested on December 12, 1941 in his Parisian home, among the first Jews to be arrested in Paris by the French police after France was defeated and occupied by the German
Nazis. He was held in the Beaune-la-Rolande
camp, then in the Drancy deportation camp. On September 23, 1942, he was shipped to the Auschwitz concentration camp
where he was later killed by the Nazis.
The Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo toured chiefly in the United States after World War II began. The company introduced audiences to ballet in cities and towns across the country where people had never seen classical dance. In 1968, the company went bankrupt. Before then, many of its dancers had moved on to other careers; a number started their own studios and many taught dance.
The company's principal dancers performed with other companies, and founded dance schools and companies of their own across the United States and Europe. They taught the Russian ballet traditions to generations of Americans and Europeans.
Among the most notable was George Balanchine
's founding of the School of American Ballet
and New York City Ballet
, for which he created works for 40 years. Alexandra Danilova taught for 30 years in his School of American Ballet. Maria Tallchief, who was one of Balanchine's wives, danced with the New York City Ballet for years.
Roya Curie, a protégé of David Lichine
and premier dancer with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo International, established a school in upstate New York in 1950. Other examples were Frederic Franklin, who was a director of the Washington Ballet
. He still advises Dance Theatre of Harlem
, as well as performing. Jo Savino formed the St. Paul Ballet in Minnesota.
Many dancers of the corps de ballet also taught and passed on the Russian traditions, establishing ballet studios across the United States. For example, in the late 1940s, Marian and Illaria Ladre set up their Ballet Academy in Seattle, where they taught students who went on to dance and teach in their turn. Students who had professional dance careers included James De Bolt of the Joffrey Ballet
, Cyd Charisse
, Marc Platt
, Harold Lang
, and Ann Reinking
.
In 1994 Mrs. Illaria Ladre was among the first American dancers, choreographers and writers honored by receiving the newly established Vaslav Nijinsky
Medal, sponsored by the Polish Artists Agency in Warsaw, for work carrying on the tradition of Nijinsky. Other awardees were Gerald Arpino
, Ann Barzel
, Oleg Briansky, Vladimir Dokoudovsky (1919–1998), Peter Ostwald, Richard Philp, Jennie Schulman, Mr. Turnbaugh, Anatole Vilzak and George Zoritch
.
A feature documentary about the company, featuring interviews with many of the dancers, was released in 2005, with the title Ballets Russes
.
A Thousand Encores: Ballets Russes in Australia was a documentary screened on ABC Television
on November 3, 2009, about the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo's three visits to Australia between 1936 and 1940. The documentary claims that there is more footage of the Ballet Russes in Australia than anywhere else in the world. Some film was in colour, a rarity for that time.
Ballet company
A ballet company is a group of dancers who perform ballet, plus managerial and support staff. Most major ballet companies employ dancers on a year-round basis, except in the United States, where contracts for part of the year are the norm...
created by members of the Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo in 1938 after Léonide Massine and René Blum had a falling-out with the co-founder Wassily de Basil (usually referred to as Colonel W. de Basil). De Basil then renamed his rival company The Original Ballet Russe
Original Ballet Russe
The Original Ballet Russe was a ballet company established in 1932 by René Blum and Colonel Wassily de Basil as a successor to the Ballets Russes. The company assumed the new name Original Ballet Russe after a split between de Basil and Blum...
.
The company
British dancers Frederic Franklin and Jo Savino were among those who joined the new company. Franklin danced with them from 1938–1952. In the 1940s, Maria TallchiefMaria Tallchief
Maria Tallchief was the first native-American prima ballerina. From 1942 to 1947 she danced with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, but she is best known for her time with the New York City Ballet from 1947 to 1965.-Early life:...
and Tamara Toumanova
Tamara Toumanova
Tamara Toumanova was an American ballerina and actress. "Toumanova" was a stage name proposed by Olga Preobrazhenskaya, after her mother’s family name of Tumanishvili.-Personal life:...
joined the company as principle dancers.
Blum was arrested on December 12, 1941 in his Parisian home, among the first Jews to be arrested in Paris by the French police after France was defeated and occupied by the German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
Nazis. He was held in the Beaune-la-Rolande
Beaune-la-Rolande
Beaune-la-Rolande is a commune in the Loiret department in north-central France.On 28 November 1870 it was the site of a battle during the Franco-Prussian War, in which the noted French impressionist painter Frédéric Bazille was killed....
camp, then in the Drancy deportation camp. On September 23, 1942, he was shipped to the Auschwitz concentration camp
Auschwitz concentration camp
Concentration camp Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II...
where he was later killed by the Nazis.
The Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo toured chiefly in the United States after World War II began. The company introduced audiences to ballet in cities and towns across the country where people had never seen classical dance. In 1968, the company went bankrupt. Before then, many of its dancers had moved on to other careers; a number started their own studios and many taught dance.
The company's principal dancers performed with other companies, and founded dance schools and companies of their own across the United States and Europe. They taught the Russian ballet traditions to generations of Americans and Europeans.
Among the most notable was George Balanchine
George Balanchine
George Balanchine , born Giorgi Balanchivadze in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to a Georgian father and a Russian mother, was one of the 20th century's most famous choreographers, a developer of ballet in the United States, co-founder and balletmaster of New York City Ballet...
's founding of the School of American Ballet
School of American Ballet
The School of American Ballet is one of the most famous classical ballet schools in the world and is the associate school of the New York City Ballet, a leading international ballet company based at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. The school trains students from the...
and New York City Ballet
New York City Ballet
New York City Ballet is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Leon Barzin was the company's first music director. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company...
, for which he created works for 40 years. Alexandra Danilova taught for 30 years in his School of American Ballet. Maria Tallchief, who was one of Balanchine's wives, danced with the New York City Ballet for years.
Roya Curie, a protégé of David Lichine
David Lichine
David Lichine / Дэвид Лишин was a Russian/French/US ballet dancer and choreographer; he was born as Давид Лихтенштейн David Lichtenštejn / David Lichtenstein ....
and premier dancer with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo International, established a school in upstate New York in 1950. Other examples were Frederic Franklin, who was a director of the Washington Ballet
Washington Ballet
The Washington Ballet is an ensemble of professional athletic classical ballet dancers. It was founded in 1976 by American ballet pioneer Mary Day, and has been under the artistic directorship of Septime Webre since 1999.-The Mary Day years :...
. He still advises Dance Theatre of Harlem
Dance Theatre of Harlem
Dance Theatre of Harlem is a ballet company and school of the allied arts founded in Harlem, New York City, USA in 1969 by Arthur Mitchell and Karel Shook...
, as well as performing. Jo Savino formed the St. Paul Ballet in Minnesota.
Many dancers of the corps de ballet also taught and passed on the Russian traditions, establishing ballet studios across the United States. For example, in the late 1940s, Marian and Illaria Ladre set up their Ballet Academy in Seattle, where they taught students who went on to dance and teach in their turn. Students who had professional dance careers included James De Bolt of the Joffrey Ballet
Joffrey Ballet
The Joffrey Ballet is a dance company in Chicago, Illinois, founded in 1956. From 1995 to 2004, the company was known as The Joffrey Ballet of Chicago. The company regularly performs classical ballets including Romeo & Juliet and The Nutcracker, while balancing those classics with pioneering modern...
, Cyd Charisse
Cyd Charisse
Cyd Charisse was an American actress and dancer.After recovering from polio as a child, and studying ballet, Charisse entered films in the 1940s...
, Marc Platt
Marc Platt (dancer)
Marc Platt is an American ballet dancer and musical theatre performer.Platt was trained by the influential teacher Mary Ann Wells...
, Harold Lang
Harold Lang
Harold Lang was an American dancer and actor.-Biography:Lang began his professional career as a ballet dancer, making his professional debut with the San Francisco Ballet in 1938 and then going on to perform with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo two years later and American Ballet Theatre in 1943...
, and Ann Reinking
Ann Reinking
Ann Reinking is an American actress, dancer, and choreographer. She has worked extensively in musical theatre, both as a dancer and choreographer, as well as appearing in film.-Biography:...
.
In 1994 Mrs. Illaria Ladre was among the first American dancers, choreographers and writers honored by receiving the newly established Vaslav Nijinsky
Vaslav Nijinsky
Vaslav Nijinsky was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer of Polish descent, cited as the greatest male dancer of the 20th century. He grew to be celebrated for his virtuosity and for the depth and intensity of his characterizations...
Medal, sponsored by the Polish Artists Agency in Warsaw, for work carrying on the tradition of Nijinsky. Other awardees were Gerald Arpino
Gerald Arpino
Gerald Arpino was an American dancer and choreographer. He was the artistic director and co-founder of The Joffrey Ballet.-Life and career:...
, Ann Barzel
Ann Barzel
Ann Barzel was an American writer, critic and lecturer on dance.In 1920, Barzel moved to Chicago. Her first Chicago dance teachers were Mark Turbyfill and Adolph Bolm. From about 1931 to 1943, Barzel performed as a dancer...
, Oleg Briansky, Vladimir Dokoudovsky (1919–1998), Peter Ostwald, Richard Philp, Jennie Schulman, Mr. Turnbaugh, Anatole Vilzak and George Zoritch
George Zoritch
George Zoritch was a dancer born in Moscow. He joined the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in 1935 and toured with them in the United States after WWII...
.
A feature documentary about the company, featuring interviews with many of the dancers, was released in 2005, with the title Ballets Russes
Ballets Russes (documentary)
Ballets Russes is a 2005 feature documentary about the dancers of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. It was directed by Dayna Goldfine and Dan Geller, and featured Irina Baronova, Alicia Markova, George Zoritch, and Tatiana Riabouchinska, among others. It was narrated by Marian Seldes...
.
A Thousand Encores: Ballets Russes in Australia was a documentary screened on ABC Television
ABC Television
ABC Television is a service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation launched in 1956. As a public broadcasting broadcaster, the ABC provides four non-commercial channels within Australia, and a partially advertising-funded satellite channel overseas....
on November 3, 2009, about the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo's three visits to Australia between 1936 and 1940. The documentary claims that there is more footage of the Ballet Russes in Australia than anywhere else in the world. Some film was in colour, a rarity for that time.
Reviews
- http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10C10FE3A5E10728DDDA10994D9415B898FF1D3NY Times, November 18, 1939, GiselleGiselleGiselle is a ballet in two acts with a libretto by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Théophile Gautier, music by Adolphe Adam, and choreography by Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot. The librettist took his inspiration from a poem by Heinrich Heine...
]
External Links
- Guide to Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo records at Houghton Library, Harvard University