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Ballets Russes

 

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Ballets Russes


 
 



The Ballets Russes (French for The Russian Ballets) was a balletBallet

Ballet is a specific dance form and technique....
 company established in 1909 by the Russian impresarioImpresario

An impresario is a manager or producer in one of the entertainment industries, usually music or theatre....
 Serge Diaghilev. It performed until his death in 1929. It was initially resident in the Théâtre MogadorThéâtre Mogador

Th??tre Mogador founded in 1913 and designed by Bertie Crewe, is a Parisian music hall theatre located in the 9th district....
 and Théâtre du ChâteletFacts About Théâtre du Châtelet

The Th??tre du Ch?telet is a theatre and opera house in Paris, France....
, ParisFacts About Paris

native_name = Ville de Paris|common_name = Paris...
 and then moved to Monte CarloFacts About Monte Carlo

Monte Carlo is the wealthiest of Monaco's 4 quarters, sometimes erroneously believed to be the country's capital, even thoug...
. Its members originated from the Tsar's Imperial Ballet of St. Petersburg, where all its dancers were associated and trained. Younger dancers were trained in the Russian tradition in Paris, with the community of exiles after the Russian Revolution. The company featured and premiered now-famous (and sometimes infamous) works by the great choreographers Marius PetipaMarius Petipa

Marius Ivanovich Petipa - was a ballet dancer, teacher, and choreographer....
, Michel FokineMichel Fokine

Michel Fokine or Mikhail Mikhailovich Fokin – August 22 1942) was a groundbreaking Russian choreographer and dan...
, Bronislava NijinskaBronislava Nijinska

Bronislava Nijinska was a Russian dancer, choreographer, and teacher of Polish descent,...
, Leonide Massine, Vaslav NijinskyVaslav Nijinsky

Vaslav Fomich Nijinsky was a Polish-born Russian ballet dancer and choreographer....
, and a young George BalanchineGeorge Balanchine

George Balanchine is one of the 20th Century's foremost choreographers, and one of the founders of American ballet....
 at the start of his career.

It created a sensation in Western EuropeWestern Europe

Western Europe is mainly a socio-political concept coined, forged and used during the Cold War....
 because of the great vitality of RussiaRussia

Russia , also the Russian Federation , is a country that stretches over a vast expanse of Eurasia....
n ballet compared to French dance. The Ballets Russes became one of the most influential ballet companies of the 20th century, in part because of its ground-breaking artistic collaboration among contemporary choreographers, composers, artists, and dancers. Its works were part of the avant-gardeAvant-garde

Avant-garde in French means front guard, advance guard, or vanguard....
 culture in Paris and France. That influence, in one form or another, has lasted to this day.

After Diaghilev's death, the company's property was claimed by creditors. The dancers were scattered. Colonel Wassily de Basil and his associate René BlumRené Blum Summary

Ren Blum was the founder of the Ballet de l'Opera at Monte Carlo....
 revived the company under the name Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo. George BalanchineGeorge Balanchine

George Balanchine is one of the 20th Century's foremost choreographers, and one of the founders of American ballet....
 and Leonide Massine worked with them as choreographers and Tamara ToumanovaTamara Toumanova

Tamara Toumanova was one of the greatest ballerinas....
 as a principal dancer. De Basil and Blum argued constantly, so Blum founded another company under the name Original Ballet RusseOriginal Ballet Russe Overview

The Original Ballet Russe was a ballet company led by Wassily de Basil, which split from the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in ...
.

During World War II the Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo toured extensively in the United States, giving Americans a strong impression of what was known as "Russian Ballet." When dancers retired and left the company, they often founded dance studios in the United States or South AmericaSouth America Overview

South America is a continent situated in the western hemisphere and, mostly, the southern hemisphere, bordered on the west b...
, or taught at other dancers' studios. With Balanchine's founding of the New York City BalletNew York City Ballet

New York City Ballet is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein....
, many former Ballet Russes de Monte Carlo dancers went to New York to teach.

The Original Ballet Russe toured mostly in Europe. Its alumni were influential in teaching classical Russian ballet technique in European and British schools.

The Serge Lifar collection of Ballets Russes costumes and other memorabilia is on display at the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford, Connecticut.

The ballet company and artistic collaboration

The company consisted of 13 members, all at a very high standard of dance.
The dancers and choreographers associated with it included George BalanchineGeorge Balanchine

George Balanchine is one of the 20th Century's foremost choreographers, and one of the founders of American ballet....
, Mathilde KschessinskaMathilde Kschessinska

Mathilde Kschessinska]] Ligovo near Peterhof 7 June 1971 Paris), was the first Russian prima ballerina assoluta in the ...
, Michel FokineMichel Fokine

Michel Fokine or Mikhail Mikhailovich Fokin – August 22 1942) was a groundbreaking Russian choreographer and dan...
, Vera KaralliVera Karalli

Vera Alexeyevna Karalli was a notable Russian ballet dancer, choreographer and actress during the early years of the twent...
, Tamara KarsavinaTamara Karsavina

Tamara Platonovna Karsavina was a famous Russian ballerina who eventually settled in England, where she helped found the R...
, Serge LifarSerge Lifar Overview

Serge Lifar was a ballet dancer and choreographers of Ukrainian origin, famous as one of the greatest male ballet dancers of...
, Alicia MarkovaAlicia Markova

Dame Alicia Markova, DBE was an English prima ballerina....
, Léonide Massine, Bronislawa Nijinska, Vaslav NijinskyVaslav Nijinsky

Vaslav Fomich Nijinsky was a Polish-born Russian ballet dancer and choreographer....
, Anna Pavlova, Ida RubinsteinIda Rubinstein

Ida Lvovna Rubinstein was a ballet dancer, patron and iconic Belle Epoque beauty....
 and Lydia LopokovaLydia Lopokova Overview

Lydia Vasilyevna Lopokova, Baroness Keynes was a famous Russian ballerina dancer during the early 20th-century....
.

The company invited contemporary artists to design sets and costumes, including BakstLéon Bakst

L?on Samoilovitch Bakst was a Russian painter and scene- and costume designer who revolutionized the arts he worked in....
, Benois, BraqueGeorges Braque

Georges Braque was a French painter and sculptor, and with Pablo Picasso one of the inventors of cubism....
, Gontcharova, PicassoPablo Picasso

Pablo Ruz y Picasso was a Spanish painter and sculptor....
, ChanelCoco Chanel

Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel was a pioneering French couturier whose modernist philosophy, menswear-inspired fashions, a...
, MatisseHenri Matisse

Henri Matisse was a French artist, noted for his use of color and his fluid, brilliant and original draftsmanship....
, DerainAndré Derain

Andr Derain was a French painter and an illustrator....
, MiroJoan Miró

Joan Mir i Ferr was a Catalan painter, sculptor and ceramist born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....
, de ChiricoGiorgio de Chirico

Giorgio de Chirico often known as Npo, was an influential pre-Surrealist Greek-Italian painter born in Volos, Greece to a Ge...
, DalíSalvador Dalí

Salvador Felip Jacint Dal Domnech, Marquess of Pubol , known popularly as Salvador Dal, was a Catalan-Spanish artist ...
, BilibinIvan Bilibin

Ivan Yakovlevich Bilibin was one of the most influential 20th-century illustrators and stage designers who took part in the ...
, Tchelitchev, UtrilloMaurice Utrillo Summary

Maurice Utrillo, born Maurice Valadon, was a French painter who specialized in cityscapes....
 and Nicholas Roerich.

In another collaboration, Diaghilev and his choregraphers worked with contemporary composers, who included DebussyClaude Debussy

Achille-Claude Debussy was a French composer....
, MilhaudDarius Milhaud

*Morton Subotnick*Dave Brubeck*Bill Smith...
, PoulencFrancis Poulenc

Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc was a French composer and a member of the French Group Les Six....
, ProkofievSergei Prokofiev

Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev was a Russian composer who mastered numerous musical genres and came to be admired as one of t...
, RavelMaurice Ravel

Joseph-Maurice Ravel was a French composer and pianist, known especially for the subtlety, richness, and poignancy of his m...
, SatieErik Satie

Eric Alfred Leslie Satie was a French composer, pianist and writer....
, RespighiOttorino Respighi

Ottorino Respighi was an Italian composer, musicologist and violinist....
, and Richard StraussRichard Strauss Overview

Richard Strauss was a German composer of the late Romantic era, particularly noted for his tone poems and operas....
. Perhaps the most notable was Igor StravinskyIgor Stravinsky

Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky was a Russian-born composer....
, whom Diaghilev spotted when he was virtually unknown. By hiring Stravinsky, Diaghilev helped launch his career in Europe and later the United States. Stravinsky's scores for ballets The Firebird and Rite of Spring shocked Paris audiences and the latter caused a near riot.

Principal productions

See also:

YearTitleComposerChoreographerSet and costume
1909Le Pavillon d'ArmideNikolai TcherepninNikolai Tcherepnin

Nikolai Nikolayevich Tcherepnin was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor....
Michel FokineAlexandre BenoisAlexandre Benois

Alexandre Nikolayevich Benois was probably the most important member of the artistic Benois family....
1909Prince IgorPrince Igor

Prince Igor is an opera in four acts with a prologue by Alexander Borodin....
Alexander BorodinAlexander Borodin

Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin was a Russian composer of Georgian parentage who made his living as a notable chemist....
Michel FokineNicholas RoerichNicholas Roerich

Nicholas Roerich, also known as Nikolai Konstantinovich Rerikh, was a Russian painter and spiritual teacher....
1909CléopatreAnton ArenskyAnton Arensky

Anton Stepanovich Arensky, was a Russian Romantic composer and music professor born in Novgorod, Russia....
Michel FokineLéon BakstLéon Bakst

L?on Samoilovitch Bakst was a Russian painter and scene- and costume designer who revolutionized the arts he worked in....
1910The FirebirdThe Firebird

The Firebird is a 1910 ballet by Igor Stravinsky based on the Russian folk tales of the magical glowing bird that is bot...
Igor StravinskyMichel FokineAlexandre Golovine, Léon Bakst
1910SchéhérazadeScheherazade (Rimsky-Korsakov)

Scheherazade, Op. 35, is a symphonic suite composed by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov in 1888....
Rimsky-KorsakovNikolai Rimsky-Korsakov

Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov, also Nikolay, Nicolai, and Rimsky-Korsakoff, was a Russian composer, one of...
Michel FokineLéon Bakst
1910CarnavalCarnaval

Carnaval is an official Mexican holiday that kicks off a five-day celebration of the libido before the Catholic lent begins ...
Robert SchumannRobert Schumann

Robert Schumann was a German composer and pianist....
Michel FokineLéon Bakst
1911PetrushkaIgor StravinskyMichel FokineAlexandre Benois
1911Le Spectre de la RoseLe Spectre de la Rose

Le Spectre de la Rose is a ballet of the Ballets Russes based on a choreographic poem by Theophile Gautier....
Carl Maria von WeberCarl Maria von Weber

Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber was a German composer....
Michel FokineLéon Bakst
1912L'après-midi d'un fauneAfternoon of a Faun (ballet)

The ballet L'aprs-midi d'un faune was choreographed by Vaslav Nijinsky for the Ballets Russes, and first performed in th...
Claude DebussyMichel Fokine, Vaslav NijinskyLéon Bakst, Odilon RedonOdilon Redon Overview

Odilon Redon was a Symbolist painter, born in Bordeaux, Aquitaine, France....
1912Daphnis et ChloéDaphnis et Chloé

Daphnis et Chlo is a ballet with music by Maurice Ravel....
Maurice RavelMichel FokineLéon Bakst
1912Le Dieu BleuReynaldo HahnReynaldo Hahn

Reynaldo Hahn was a naturalised French composer, conductor, music critic and diarist....
Michel FokineLéon Bakst
1912ThamarThamar

Thamar Angelina Komnene, was born in the latter half of the 13th century....
Mily BalakirevMily Balakirev

Mily Alexeyevich Balakirev was a Russian composer....
Michel FokineLéon Bakst
1913JeuxJeux

Jeux, described as a "pome dans", is the last work for orchestra written by Claude Debussy....
Claude DebussyVaslav NijinskyLéon Bakst
1913Le sacre du printempsIgor StravinskyVaslav NijinskyNicholas Roerich
1913Tragédie de SalomèFlorent SchmittFlorent Schmitt

Florent Schmitt was a French composer....
Boris RomanovSergey Sudeykin
1914La légende de JosephRichard StraussMichel FokineLéon Bakst
1914Le Coq d'OrRimsky-KorsakovMichel FokineNatalia GoncharovaNatalia Goncharova Summary

Natalia Sergeevna Goncharova was a prominent Russian Cubo-Futurism painter and costume designer. ...
1915Soleil de NuitRimsky-KorsakovLéonide MassineMikhail LarionovMikhail Larionov

Mikhail Fyodorovich Larionov was an avant-garde Russian painter....
1917ParadeParade (ballet)

Parade is a ballet with music by Erik Satie and a one-act scenario by Jean Cocteau....
Erik SatieLéonide MassinePablo Picasso
1919La Boutique fantasqueLa Boutique fantasque

La Boutique fantasque or The Magic Toy Shop was a ballet conceived by Leonide Massine who wrote the choreograp...
Gioachino Rossini, Ottorino RespighiLéonide MassineAndré Derain
1919El Sombrero de Tres PicosEl Sombrero de Tres Picos

El Sombrero de Tres Picos is a ballet composed by Manuel de Falla, commissioned in its development by Sergei Diaghilev and p...
(aka Le Tricorne)
Manuel de FallaFacts About Manuel de Falla

Manuel de Falla y Matheu was a Spanish composer of classical music....
Léonide MassinePablo Picasso
1920Le chant du rossignolIgor StravinskyLéonide MassineHenri MatisseHenri Matisse

Henri Matisse was a French artist, noted for his use of color and his fluid, brilliant and original draftsmanship....
1920PulcinellaPulcinella (ballet)

Pulcinella is a ballet by Igor Stravinsky based on an 18th-century play....
Igor StravinskyLéonide MassinePablo Picasso
1921ChoutSergei ProkofievMikhail LarionovMikhail Larionov
1921Sleeping PrincessPyotr TchaikovskyMarius PetipaLéon Bakst
1922RenardRenard (Stravinsky)

Renard, Histoire burlesque chante et joue is a one-act chamber opera-ballet by Igor Stravinsky, written in 1916....
Igor StravinskyBronislava NijinskaBronislava Nijinska

Bronislava Nijinska was a Russian dancer, choreographer, and teacher of Polish descent,...
Mikhail Larionov
1923Les NocesLes Noces

Les Noces by Igor Stravinsky, is a dance cantata, or ballet with vocalists, choreographed by Bronislava Nijinska that wa...
Igor StravinskyBronislava NijinskaNatalia Goncharova
1924Les BichesLes Biches

Les Biches is a ballet by Francis Poulenc, premiered by the Ballets Russes in 1924....
Francis PoulencBronislava NijinskaMarie LaurencinMarie Laurencin

Marie Laurencin was a Parisian painter and engraver....
1924Les FâcheuxGeorges AuricGeorges Auric

Georges Auric was a French composer, born in Lodve, Hrault, Languedoc-Roussillon, France....
Bronislava NijinskaGeorges Braque
1924Le train bleuDarius MilhaudBronislava NijinskaLaurens (scene), Coco ChanelCoco Chanel

Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel was a pioneering French couturier whose modernist philosophy, menswear-inspired fashions, a...
 (costumi), Pablo Picasso (fondali)
1925Les matelotsGeorges AuricLéonide MassinePruna
1926Jack in the BoxErik SatieGeorge BalanchineAndré Derain
1927La chatteHenri SauguetHenri Sauguet

Henri SauguetHe started learning the piano when he was just five years old, being taught by his mother, Elisabeth, and also...
George BalanchineNaum GaboNaum Gabo

Naum Gabo KBE was a prominent sculptor in the Constructivism movement and a pioneer of Kinetic Art....
1927MercureErik SatieLéonide MassinePablo Picasso
1927Pas d'acierSergei ProkofievLéonide MassineGeorge Jaculov
1928Apollon musagèteIgor StravinskyGeorge BalanchineBauschant (scene), Coco Chanel (costumi)
1929Le fils prodigueSergei ProkofievGeorge BalanchineGeorges RouaultGeorges Rouault

Georges Henri Rouault was a French Fauvist and Expressionist painter....

External links

  • (2005), documentary covering the history of the Ballets Russes, Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and Original Ballet Russe from the former's inception through the latter's end, featuring many interviews with surviving dancers of the company - IMDB listing
  • – article by Robert Greenham about Barrie's play The Truth about the Russian Dancers and his friendships with the prima ballerinas of Ballets Russes, Lydia Lopokova and Tamara Karsavina.