Famous Ballerina

It is hard to imagine that French ballet would really take off without constant patronage, funding and financial support of King of France Louis XIV called The Sun King. People may view his life and policies negatively but we do not intend to go into that in a simple blog post. There is just one thing we know for sure – Louis loved ballet and ballet dancing.

The Sun King frequently danced in court ballets during the early half of his reign. He danced four parts in 3 of Molière’s comédies-ballets. When Louis danced at court ballets, his performances were accompanied by majestic music by Jean-Baptiste Lully and lyrics that expressed royal power and benevolence of the king. Louis danced as long as he could until he gained weight and could not perform anymore.

Philippe Beaussant the most famous expert on French baroque music created a biography of Jean-Baptiste Lully which served as the basis of the film Le Roi Danse (The King Is Dancing). In the year 2000, Belgian director Gérard Corbiau made a beautiful film which is a must see for any ballet lover and anybody who would like to learn more about history of ballet. This extravagant and this lavish costume drama depicts the rise of the Sun King through the eyes of the composer Jean-Baptiste Lully. King’s power and growing influence are presented through the elaborate ballet dance routines.

It took several years for this film to get the English titles, so now it is available to English-speaking audience as well as French. Here is an extract that we found for you. It is in French but it shows some of the best dances in the movie and the birth of the official French ballet.

Ballet Innovator Marie Camargo

Legendary French ballerina Marie Anne de Cupis de Camargo was born in Brussels in 1710. Marie’s family could hardly make ends meet. Her father of Spanish ancestry, who was earning peanuts as a dance instructor and violinist, trained Marie for stage since her childhood.

Her talents got noticed by the first dancer of Paris Opéra Françoise Prévost. She took Marie under her wing and gave her lessons. The training was so successful that Marie Camargo soon got an engagement as the first ballerina dancer in Brussels and then in Rouen.

Marie became the darling of French ballet audience when she debuted at at the Paris Opera ballet in 1726. Her extraordinary ballet technique truly amazed Parisians. They nicknamed her in awe La Camargo and it sounded higher than any aristocratic title. Every new Parisian fashion had her name; her hair styles were copied by all ladies at king’s court; even her shoemaker made a fortune.

As La Camargo’s fame rose, so were the scandals connected to her name. There was another ballet star in Paris – ballet legend Marie Sallé. And both stars were competitive and enigmatic. Each rival wanted to rule the stage and put sometimes extreme efforts to be above the other. And, surprisingly, this rivalry enriched both of them as Camargo and Sallé achieved new heights in ballet. The stakes for both ballerinas were high which brought to life Voltaire’s satirical quote: “Ah! Camargo. How brilliant you are! But, great gods, how ravishing is also Sallé.”

Marie Camargo led and extravagant life. Aristocratic admirers were fighting for her attention, and showering beautiful ballerina with expensive presents. One of them Louis de Bourbon, Count of Clermont took her away from the stage for five years, from 1736 to 1741. But Marie returned back to Paris Opera and danced for another ten years, without losing an inch of admiration from her audience.

Ballet Changes Introduced by La Camargo

Obviously, Camargo’s adventurous life still enchanted ballet public for another century as brilliant Marius Petipa created a new ballet Camargo based on the incident when Maire and her sister were abducted by the Comte de Melun in 1728. And this ballet The work was later revived in 1901 for the Russian Imperial Ballet with Pierina Legnani played the leading role as Camargo.

Throughout her life La Camargo successfully performed in 78 ballets or operas, always to the delight of the public.  She retired from stage in 1751 and received a generous government pension. Marie died in 1770.

Here is a short list of her innovations and contributions to ballet that does not include her technique and dramatic performance:

• she was the first woman to execute the entrechat quatre.
• she was the first dancer to wear slippers instead of heeled shoes.
• first female to wear the short calf-length ballet skirt, what afterwards became the regulation length.
• first ballerina dancer to wear ballet tights that are now standardized.

Ballerina Marie Camargo by Nicolas Lancret

Ballerina Marie Sallé

Marie Sallé lived only 49 years but she became one of those brilliant dancers and choreographers who started and continued ballet reforms in the 18th century. Born in humble surroundings in 1707, she began dancing at an early age and at 11 debuted at the comical opera on a simple fair. Marie toured many fairs for several years before she took the stage of Parisian Opéra in 1721. Françoise Prévost, sponsored her debut.

Her success on stage gave her a chance to study in the Académie Royale de Danse, the first dance institution established in the Western world. Marie and her famous future rival Marie Camargo were taught ballet by their famous ballet predecessor, famous ballerina and choreographer Françoise Prévost who also helped to establish the classical ballet.

At that time neither Sallé nor Camargo could not advance rapidly through the ranks as Françoise Provost was still a premiere danseuse in the Paris Opera holding back both ambitious ballerinas. This is why Marie’s initial performances took place in London at at Lincoln’s Inn Fields Theatre where she spent two years honing and polishing her dancing skills.

Ballet Experiments and Scandals

Upon her return to Paris, Marie joined corps de ballet in Opera and was quickly recognized for her talents. Her dancing career took on as well as well as famous rivalry with Marie Camargo. In 1734 caused shock in Parisian audience as she dared during the dances to raise her her fashionably oppressive, skirts above her ankle for more freedom of movement. To outdo Camargo Marie Sallé caused even bigger scandal. She appeared in her own ballet production of Pygmalion with her hair down, wearing only a tunic.

We call Marie Sallé a reformer of the ballet dance for her expressive dramatic performances unusual at that time. Before ballet reforms of Jean-Georges Noverre in the late 18th century she already started choreographic experiments integrating music, costumes, and dance styles of her ballets with their themes. Marie had a firm belief that ballet dances should be natural and expressive, thus, dropping burdensome ornaments and heavy dresses out and replacing them with light muslin ones in her productions.

In 1740 Marie retired from the stage but many of her ballet experiments were adopted by her successors including Noverre and became the part of the classical ballet. She died in 1756.

Ballerina Marie Sallé in 1734

If you ever ask French people about Yvette Chauviré, they will tell you that she is France’s greatest ballerina ever lived. It is hard not to agree with them as Yvette’s brilliant ballet career spanned from 1937 to 1972. She was born in Paris in 1917 and celebrated her 90th birthday in 2007. For many years she was a true ballet start and prima ballerina at the Paris Opera Ballet. When she retired from dancing Yvette became its artistic director. Through her teaching new talented ballerinas are dancing in Paris Opera Ballet. Among them prima ballerina Sylvie Gulliem – one of the most prominent figures in the history of ballet.

 
French ballerina Yvette Chauviré performs the Dying Swan.

Famous Italian Ballerina Eleanora Abbagnato

Eleonora Abbagnato was born in Palermo, Italy in 1978. When she was only 11 she debuted on Italian live TV program and at age 12 At age 12 she moved to Monte Carlo , where she studied in the ballet school of Marika Bresobrasova. She went on with ballet training in Cannes and then entered famous ‘Ecole danse in Parisian Opera in 1992. She made an amazing career as she entered corps de ballet of Parisian Opera in 1996, and became a coryphée in 1999 , sujet in 2000 and première danseuse in 2001 .

Pierina Legnani, 1895

The highest rank that ever existed in ballet is Prima Ballerina Assoluta. It is rarely bestowed on the best of the best ballerinas for their exceptional talents and mastership.  The rank itself was invented by famous French  balletmaster Marius Petipa who headed for many years Russian Imperial Ballet. The idea came to Petipa when he studied the history of the early Romantic Ballet. So, he became the official father of this title when he awarded it to the famous Italian ballerina Pierina Legnani whom he considered a supreme danseuse of all Europe. 
 

Legnani went through extensive training at famous La Scala where she developed her technical expertise. At the time when Petita awarded her with the title,  Pierina was also performing on the stage of St Petersburg Imperial Ballet. She was the first Ballerina in the world to perform outstanding  32 fouettés en tournant during the performance of the ballet Cinderella. 

Although Legnani danced only for 8 years at the Imperial Ballet,  she left deep impression on the contemporaries who witnessed her strength, stamina, and technique. Even today 32 fouettes en tournant is still considered a very difficult step to do.

Famous prima ballerina Olga Preobrajenska was one of the most popular dancers in Russian Imperial Ballet. She earned her title in 1900, right in the beginning of the 20th century. Her performance was famous for its improvisation and creativity, thus Olga was praized and loved by the audience and the critics.

Preobrajenska was lucky to have great teachers right when she was just started her dancing career. She was trained by world class ballet dancers like Maurice Petipa, Nicholas Legat, Christian Johansson and others whose names had already been engraved in the history of the 19th century classical ballet.

Olga was also lucky that she managed to emigrate from Bolshevik Russia in 1921 and bring her talents of a ballet dancer and teacher to the West. For the next two years she taught in Milan, London, Buenos Aires and Berlin and, finally moved to France. In Paris Preobrajenska opened her famous ballet school that was thought to be one of the best in the world.  It existed practically till the death of its owner and closed its doors in 1960.

During the life of the ballet school practically any major ballet dancer of the times visited Preobrajenska to learn her legendary ballet moves.  Among her students were Fonteyn, Baranova, Toumanova and others.  Olga did not live long after her retirement in 1960. She passed away in 1960 when she was 91years old.

Olga Preobrajenska in Raymonda, 1898

In 1729 when a boy was born in the popular theatrical family in Florence. They named him Gaetano Appolino Baldassare Vestris. Nobody in the family could even dream that one day this boy would become the most famous French male ballet dancers of the 18th century.  However, even as a teenager Gaetano Vestris showed so many talents in ballet that he got a chance to study dance at the Royal Academy in Paris.  There he shortened his Italian name to Gaetan Vestris.

His dancing debut took place when he was only some twenty years old at the famous Paris Opera.  Soon Gaetan Vestris became the favorite dancer of the French royal family and went up the career ladder even further.  He was promoted to the title of the king’s dancing master and was teaching his technique to Louis XVI.

Gaetan Vestris entered the history of ballet not only because of his excellent dancing abilities. He was also the first ballet dancer who discarded the mask that traditionally was worn by European dancers.  After he removed the mask he made another historical innovation – Vestris started using his face in mime and succeeded in it as he was not only great dancer but an excellent mimic as well.

In the middle of 18th century nobody could compete with his popularity as well as with his ego.  His contemporaries claimed that not once Gaetan would say that his was one of three greatest men in Europe, comparing himself to the king of Prussia and Voltaire.

Gaetan Vestris was also lucky in marriage. He married German actress Anna Heinel and  who had a brilliant career as a opera singer of European prominence. His children followed his steps. For example, his illegitimate son Auguste Vestris was the leading dancer of French Opera for 36 years.

As the years rolled by he became the First Ballet master and was also composing ballets but, eventually retired in 1776 and died quietly in 1808. Another  great ballet master Jean Georges Noverre took his place and worked on creating famous ballet d’action.

Gaetan Vestris

One of the famous ballet dancers and innovators Jean Dauberval was born in the times of the French Kingdom in the southern city of Montpellier in 1742.  The name given to him at birth was Jean Bercher, which he later changed to Dauberval and a couple of times to D’Auberval.  In his teenage years Jean’s  talents were noticed by the great Jean-Georges Noverre, the creator of the ballet d’action.

Noverre took gifted Dauberval under his wing and trained him at the school of the famous Paris Opéra.   Noverre’s tutelage helped Jean start an astonishing career. At the age of 21 he became a premier danseur of the Académie Royale de Musique. And 8 years later in 1771 he was appointed the Ballet Master.

Soon Jean Dauberval grew up to be an undisputed head of the company who acted as chief choreographer and the artistic director. And from 1781 till 1783 he officially became the First Ballet Master of the Académie or, as they say in French -  Maître de Ballet.

For unknown for us reason this all ended in 1783. Suddenly Jean Dauberval decided to move to Bordeaux and accepted the position of the First Ballet Master at the Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux, that had been inaugurated as theater a couple of years before his arrival.  It was a beautiful building constructed by the famous architect of the Enlightenment Victor Louis who was genius also created galleries of  Palais-Royal in Paris.

Victor Louis envisioned the theater in Bordeaux as a temple of the Arts and Light, with a neo-classical facade endowed with a portico of 12 Corinthian style colossal columns. 12 statues were supported by the columns and they represented the nine muses and three goddesses.

At  Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux Jean Dauberval staged his most famous ballet Le Ballet de la paille. We know it today under the name of La Fille mal gardèe.  Throughout centuries this ballet is one the most enduring and popular works with ballet companies throughout the world.

Dauberval’s ballet had such a wild public success that he traveled to London staged it there.  This is where Dauberval changed the title of the ballet to La Fille mal gardée, which remains the title of the work today.

For the first performance in London in 1791 Dauberval’s wife Mme. Théodore reprised her role as Lise. And Dauberval’s student, Charles Didelot, known to us as the Father of Russian Ballet, danced Colas.

Jean Dauberval lived to see the times of the glittering French Empire of Napoleon and died surrounded by his family and students in 1806.

Jean Dauberval in Sylvie, 1766 (work of unknown artist)

An experienced French ballet dancer Charles Didelot had a steady position of  an instructor in dance at the Swedish Opera in the 18th century. His son, future famous dancer and choreographer Charles-Louis Didelot was born right here in Stockholm in 1786, and during his adolescence years studied dance with his father.

Young Charles was definitely very gifted and talented dancer, that is why when he was 19 years old he debuted in 1786 in Royal Swedish Ballet theater called Bollhuset.
He did not spend much time there though, because he needed to hone and polish his dancing skills. So he moved to Paris where he studied with Jean Dauberval, the Ballet Master and creator of famous ballet La Fille mal gardée.

Charles was lucky enough to have as his next teacher Jean-Georges Noverres, who revolutionized dancing with the invention of the ballet d’action. Under the lead of the great master Charles Didelot debuted in London in 1788.

His fame spread all over Europe and that is why the director of the Imperial Theatres in Saint Petersburg invited Charles to work there as the first dancer in 1801. Charles started strong there and was on top of the world for almost five years when the bad luck entered his life.

His beautiful wife Rose was a brilliant ballerina but, unfortunately, she died young in St. Petersburg during the height of her career. And soon after Didelot’s career as a dancer ended too because of the accident.

In spite of all this misfortune Charles did not give up. He switched to teaching French style of ballet dancing and became an influential figure over the development of European and Russian ballet.  In fact, he is considered to be the “Father of the Russian Ballet“. He did this successfully till the end of his life when he died in 1837 in the city of Kiev.

Charles Didelot