Alexandra Danilova

(click to enlarge)
Alexandra Danilova in Swan Lake. (credit: The Bettmann Archive)

(born Nov. 20, 1903, Peterhof, Russia — died July 13, 1997, New York, N.Y., U.S.) Russian-born U.S. ballet dancer and teacher. She attended the Imperial Ballet School in St. Petersburg and became a soloist at the Mariinsky Theatre. In 1924 she joined the Ballets Russes. From 1938 to 1952 she danced with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, touring worldwide as its prima ballerina. She created leading roles in The Triumph of Neptune, Gaîté Parisienne, Swan Lake, and Coppélia. After retiring in 1957 she became a full-time faculty member at the School of American Ballet (1964 – 89). She was instrumental in bringing classical and modern Russian repertoires to the U.S.

For more information on Alexandra Dionisyevna Danilova, visit Britannica.com.

Danilova, Alexandra (b Peterhof, 11 Nov 1903, d New York, 13 July 1997). Russian-US dancer and teacher. She studied at the Petrograd Theatre School where her teachers included Vaganova and Preobrajenska and graduated in 1920. In 1921 she joined GATOB becoming soloist in 1922. In 1924 she left Russia with Balanchine and a small group calling themselves the Soviet State Dancers and was engaged by Diaghilev to dance with his Ballets Russes (1924-9) becoming ballerina in 1927. In 1925 and again from 1929 to 1930 she danced with Monte Carlo Opera Ballet, after which she starred in the musical Waltzes from Vienna (mus. A Rasch, London, 1931-2). She was then ballerina of de Basil's Ballets Russes (1933-8) and prima ballerina of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo (1938-52). She was also guest ballerina with several companies including Sadler's Wells Ballet (1949) and London Festival Ballet (1951). Between 1954 and 1956 she toured with her own group, Great Moments of Ballet, and gave her farewell performance in 1957 as a guest artist with Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo at the New York Met. She was one of the most popular dancers of her era—technically versatile with enormous charm, elegance, and wit. Massine said her performance of the Street Dancer in his ballet Beau Danube was like ‘champagne on the stage’. She danced all the major ballerina roles, most famously Odette and Swanilda, and created principal roles in several Balanchine works including The Triumph of Neptune (1926), Le Bal (1928), Danses concertantes (1944), and La sonnambula (1946). She staged and choreographed ballets for opera as well as for several ballet companies including Coppélia for New York City Ballet (1974). Between 1964 and 1989 she was a teacher at the School of American Ballet. In 1986 she was awarded the Handel Medallion, New York, and in 1989 a Kennedy Center Award. Her autobiography, Choura, was published in New York in 1986.

Danilova as Fanny Cerrito in Pas de Quatre, 1948

Aleksandra Dionisyevna Danilova (Russian: Александра Дионисиевна Данилова) (November 20, 1903–July 13, 1997) was a Russian-born prima ballerina who became an American citizen.

Born in Peterhof, Russia, she was trained at the two major schools in Leningrad (formerly and currently St. Petersburg), the Soviet State Ballet and Russian Imperial Ballet School. She was best known for being one of the few Russian-trained ballerinas to tour outside Russia. Her first professional post was as a member of the St. Petersburg's Imperial Ballet.

In 1924, she and George Balanchine left Russia. They were soon picked up by Serge Diaghilev's Ballets Russes; Danilova as a dancer, Balanchine as a choreographer. Danilova also toured for years with the Ballets Russes under Sergei Diaghilev, then with the Ballet Russe de Monto Carlo after Diaghilev's death. She was one of her generation's biggest stars, but Danilova was never good at handling her finances. Her last ballet performance was in 1951, but she made her Broadway musical comedy debut in 1958 in Oh, Captain!. She appeared in a single scene, a dance with the show's star, Tony Randall, which stole the show. Many have said it was the finest dance number in a post-war musical. Unfortunately, the show was a commercial failure and quickly closed. She was desperate when she again met Balanchine on the street in 1964. When he heard of her plight he instantly hired her to teach at the School of American Ballet. One of the most valued members of the faculty, she remained there until her retirement in 1989.

She had a long intimate relationship with George Balanchine although they never officially married. After their romance ended their professional partnership continued, as she taught many of his dancers at the School of American Ballet, and choreographed a version of Coppélia with Balanchine. She was married and divorced twice.

She published an autobiography called Choura, which was her nickname. She also had a small role in the movie The Turning Point as a ballet teacher.

Danilova crater on Venus was named after her in 1991.

Reviews

• NY Times, November 18, 1939, of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in Giselle

External links

• InfoPlease database entry
• StreetSwing.com entry
• The Ballerina Gallery - Alexandra Danilova

Ballet portal

This article about someone associated with the art of dance is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v • d • e

v • d • e List of Russian people Leaders · before 1168 · 1168–1917 · 1917–1991 · 1991–present · Prime Ministers · Metropolitans and Patriarchs Foreign Ministers · Field Marshals · Cosmonauts · Explorers · Inventors · Architects · Artists Ballet dancers · Opera singers · Composers · Philosophers · Playwrights · Poets · Novelists

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)