Ballet Russe

There is much confusion regarding the use of the names Ballet Russe and Les Ballets Russes. The first so-called Russian Ballet was Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes (1909-29) but following his death various directors and impresarios, eager to capitalize on the Diaghilev phenomenon, used the term freely. The two most important successors to the Diaghilev company were the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo (1938-62), which was in effect a US company based in New York (led by Denham and Massine), and Les Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo (1932-52), which was Colonel de Basil's (and initially also Blum's) touring enterprise and was variously known as Ballets Russes de Colonel W. de Basil, Covent Garden Russian Ballet, and Original Ballet Russe. Several choreographers worked with both subsequent companies, including Massine and Balanchine, who also worked with Diaghilev.