2 3 Throwback Thursday and Roland Petit | Ballet Webb

Thursday, September 10, 2015

Throwback Thursday and Roland Petit



Throwback Thursday and Roland Petit

Born on the outskirts of Paris on January 13, 1924, Roland Petit was the son of a restaurant owner. At his father’s establishment he met many talented artists of the day, such as Jean Cocteau and Henri Sauguet among others. This exposure probably helped influence his later choreography.

Roland Petit began his training at age nine at the Paris Opera Ballet School, where he first met his future wife, Renée "Zizi" Jeanmaire (they married in 1954). Also nine years old, she was a student there as well.
He joined the company in 1940, but at age twenty he resigned. He went on to form his own company, Les Ballets de Paris and during its first season he choreographed for Margot Fonteyn. They had a brief love affair, and remained friends until Fonteyn’s death in 1991.

Petit’s choreography often featured props and mime, and he used angular and acrobatic movements. In 1949, he choreographed his biggest success, Carmen, for Jeanmaire. It was considered ground-breaking and featured a heroine with cropped hair and a fierce, aggressive style.

But today Roland Petit may be best known for his work in film, since his choreography can be seen in Hans Christian Anderson, Daddy Long Legs, The Glass Slipper, Anything Goes, and others.

Jeanmaire announced his death in Switzerland on July 10, 2011.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Dance History Factoid #84:  
Roland Petit was a famous choreographer who often created roles for his wife, Renée "Zizi" Jeanmaire.”

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