Tamara Toumanova

Toumanova, Tamara (b Tyumen, Siberia, 2 Mar. 1919, d Santa Monica, Calif., 29 May 1996). Russian-US dancer. An exotic and glamorous international ballerina, even her origins were special: she was born on a train near Shanghai as her parents were leaving Russia after the Revolution. Her earliest dance classes took place in China but when she was 5 the family moved to Paris, where she began to study with Preobrajenska; later she trained with Balanchine and Nijinska. She made her debut as a child prodigy in the 1929 Paris Opera production of L'Éventail de Jeanne, in which she had a leading role. She was one of the so-called ‘baby ballerinas’ (the others were Baronova and Riabouchinska) hired by Balanchine for René Blum and de Basil's new Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo in 1932; she was 13 at the time of her first performance. There she created roles in Balanchine's Cotillon, La Concurrence, and Le Bourgeois gentilhomme (1932) and in Massine's Jeux d'enfants (all 1932). For much of her career she was closely associated with Balanchine: she joined his Les Ballets 1933 and created roles in his Les Songes, Mozartiana, and Fastes. She then returned to de Basil's Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo, where she stayed until 1937, creating roles in Massine's Choreartium (1933), Union Pacific (1934), Jardin public (1935), and Symphonie fantastique (1936). In 1938 she danced with the new Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, which had Massine as its artistic director; during its London season she danced her first Giselle. She joined de Basil's Original Ballet Russe (successor to the Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo) in 1939 and created a ballerina role in Balanchine's Balustrade (1941). She danced with Denham's Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo (1941-2) and took part in Massine's Labyrinth (1941) and Saratoga (1941). She danced with Ballet Theatre (1944-5), where she created roles in Massine's Moonlight Sonata (1944) and Nijinska's Harvest Time (1944). A sought-after guest artist, she worked as a freelance ballerina with companies in Europe and America, creating roles in Balanchine's Le Palais de cristal (Paris Opera, 1947), Lifar's Phèdre (title role, Paris Opera, 1950), L'Inconnue (Paris, 1950), and La Pierre enchantée (Paris, 1950), Wallmann's La vita dell'uomo (La Scala, Milan, 1951), Dolin's Rêve (London Festival Ballet, 1952), Charrat's The Seven Deadly Sins (Milan, 1956), and Taras's Le Fanfare pour le Prince (Monte Carlo, 1956). She also gave concert performances, appearing mainly with Vladimir Oukhtomsky as her partner. She appeared in many Hollywood films, including Days of Glory (1944, produced by her husband, Casey Robinson), Tonight We Sing (1953), Deep in My Heart (1954), Invitation to the Dance (1956), Hitchcock's Torn Curtain (1966), and Wilder's The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970). She also appeared on stage, in the Broadway production of the musical Stars in Your Eyes (1939). A dancer of great beauty and virtuosity, she was admired for both her tragic and comedic skills as a performer.

• Born: Mar 02, 1917 in between Esternburg and Toumen (on train)
• Died: May 29, 1996 in Santa Monica, Los Angeles, California
• Occupation: Actor
• Active: '40s-'70s
• Major Genres: Musical, Romance
• Career Highlights: The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes, Tonight We Sing, Torn Curtain
• First Major Screen Credit: Days of Glory (1944)

Biography

Movie actress and internationally acclaimed ballet star Tamara Toumanova is said to have been born on a Russian train heading for Paris. At the time, her parents were fleeing the Bolshevik Revolution. Once safely relocated, Toumanova studied ballet in Paris and in 1924 became a professional ballerina. As a young woman, she performed with a number of highly regarded troupes beginning with a starring performance with the Paris Opera Ballet in 1929. Three years later Toumanova joined George Balanchine's Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo. She would continue on to dance with equally prestigious troupes for the next four decades. But Toumanova did not allow herself to be cast only as a classical dancer; she also wanted to act and to sing a wide variety of music. She made her Broadway debut in the 1939 musical Stars in Your Eyes. Toumanova made her feature film debut in the pre-WWII epic tribute to the Soviet Union opposite another debuting actor, Gregory Peck, in Days of Glory (1943). Though the picture didn't fare well at the box office, both Peck and Toumanova received favorable reviews. The same year the picture came out the dancer married its producer, Casey Robinson. The marriage didn't last. Toumanova continued to dance for 40 more years while also working on-stage and appearing occasionally in feature films. She made her final screen appearance in The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes Buy this Movie	Torn Curtain Buy this Movie	Invitation to the Dance Buy this Movie	Deep in My Heart Buy this Movie
Days of Glory Buy this Movie

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