Throwback Thursday and Rudolf Nureyev
One of the most famous ballet dancers of the 20th
century, Rudolf Nureyev was born in Siberia on March 17, 1938. Due to the upheaval in the Soviet Union,
Nureyev was unable to train in a major ballet center until he was
seventeen. Then he was accepted by the Leningrad Choreographic School
associated with the Kirov. He soon
became a soloist with the company.
On June 16, 1961, on a tour to Paris, Nureyev defected, and
was soon dancing with the Grand Ballet du
Marquis de Cuevas. But it was in
1962 that his most celebrated partnership began. He danced with The Royal Ballet partnering Margot Fonteyn in Giselle, and a legend was
born.
They created magic onstage despite a considerable age
difference, and Nureyev continued to dance with her even after he left the The Royal Ballet. Their last performance together was in
1988, when Fonteyn was 68 years old.
During the 1970s, Nureyev appeared in several movies, and
toured the U.S. in the musical The King
and I. In the 1980s, he took over the directorship of the Paris Opera Ballet
where he choreographed and restaged such works as Romeo and Juliet and Cinderella.
Nureyev died on January 6, 1993. His tomb features a mosaic of an oriental
carpet.
From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:
Dance History Factoid #42:
“Rudolf Nureyev was one of the most famous ballet dancers of the 20th
century.”
Link of the Day:
Quote
of the Day:
“Don’t choose the one who is beautiful to
the world. But rather, choose the one
who makes your world beautiful.
-
Alice Sebold
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