Galina Ulanova

For more information on Galina Sergeyevna Ulanova, visit Britannica.com.

The Russian ballerina Galina Ulanova (born 1910) was hailed as one of the greatest dancers of all time. She won international recognition for her lyricism and purity of technique and for her powerfully dramatic performances.

Galina Sergeyevna Ulanova was born in St. Petersburg on January 8, 1910, the only daughter of two dancers at the Maryinsky Theater. As a child Galina was somewhat boisterous and protested when her mother, Maria Romanova, gave her her first ballet lessons, firmly announcing that she did not like dancing. At the age of nine she was unwillingly enrolled as a boarder at the celebrated Theatre School, the training-ground of so many famous Russian dancers. Her strong character obviously prevailed even there. At the end-of-year school production of "La Fille Mal Gardee, " instead of being cast as a dainty peasant girl Galina Ulanova made her first appearance on stage as a boy in a clog dance!

Gradually her love for ballet developed, and her final four years at the school were spent in the class of Agrippina Vaganova, the great teacher whose notation of the Russian classical ballet system is still used today. At her graduation performance in 1928 Galina, now a delicate ballerina, danced the 7th Waltz and Mazurka of Les Sylphides and the Adagio from The Nutcracker. She expressed ribbon-like fluidity in her movements and showed an ethereal presence on stage. Her performance won her a coveted place in the Kirov Ballet Company (known then as GATOB).

The quality of her dancing was quickly noted, and in her first year she made her debut as Princess Florina in The Sleeping Beauty. A few months later she was given the role of the Swan Queen in Vaganova's own production of Swan Lake. To this role she brought poetical lyricism and sensitivity, epitomizing the very best of Russian classical technique. But it was in 1934, in Rostislav Zakharov's ballet The Fountains of Bakhchiserai, that the young ballerina showed she had a unique talent for the dramatic as well as the ethereal. Cast as Maria, the beautiful captive harem girl, Ulanova brought powerful drama to Pushkin's story of love, jealousy, and murder.

Climaxes Career as Juliet

For Ulanova, preparing the role of Maria (and all subsequent ones) became not just a question of learning the difficult technical steps but also of studying the character as would an actress, seeking out its nuances to shade and develop the role. Once on stage, she would lose herself so completely in the character that she was portraying that nothing else existed for her. At curtain calls she often seemed surprised at the adulation she received, for to her, her own personality had nothing to do with the "real" person she had been dancing.

Ulanova's performances also expressed great musicality. She once described dance as "the embodiment of music in movement." She saw it as a language that brought the musical score to living vibrant form - a belief that she herself certainly subscribed to. Nowhere was that more clearly visible than when she danced what has become her most famous role - that of Juliet.

The renowned Soviet composer Serge Prokofiev was inspired by Ulanova's talent and his score of "Romeo and Juliet" was composed with her in mind. Leonid Lavrovsky's ballet premiered at the Kirov in 1940 with Ulanova in the leading role. She imbued Shakespeare's young heroine with sensibility and beauty and continued to convince of teenage youthfulness even when she herself was nearing retirement. For many, there are two unforgettable moments, neither one a display of dazzling technique but of communicable artistry. First, at the ball: lifted high above Romeo's head, she playfully snatches his mask and sees his face for the first time. She remains frozen in awe; her excited heartbeats seem almost audible as her whole body thrills with the quickening of first love. Secondly - and perhaps the moment most associated with Ulanova - is when Juliet hurries to seek Friar Lawrence's help with her impending marriage to Paris. With black silk cape billowing out behind her, and Prokofiev's magnificent score surging forth, Ulanova runs across the stage, managing in those simple steps to depict her anguish and despair, drawing out deep emotion both from her inner self and also from the audience. Fortunately for the dance world, the ballet has been preserved on film for future generations to treasure.

After her success as Maria and then Juliet, Ulanova recognized that she was more suited to ballets that allowed her to develop the characters theatrically, which traditional classics such as The Nutcracker and The Sleeping Beauty did not. In the following years her thoughtful and focused approach brought freshness and drama to Odette/Odile in Swan Lake and to Giselle. She created roles in new ballets such as The Red Poppy, The Stone Flower, and Cinderella, often moving the audience to tears with her realistic performances.

Joined Both Kirov and Bolshoi Ballets

Ulanova was a member of the Kirov Ballet for 16 yers. During the hard years of World War II and the blockade by the Germans of Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), the company was evacuated to Perm in the Ural Mountains. During this time she also performed at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow for audiences of soldiers, many of whom had chosen her as their pin-up girl. In 1944 she moved permanently to Moscow to join the Bolshoi Ballet Company.

Ulanova made her first western tour in 1945. She was first seen in London in 1956 and in New York in 1959. She made her farewell performance in 1962 but continued to work for 30 years as a coach, handing down her profound knowledge of the dance to top ballerinas of the Bolshoi - Maximova, Semenyaka, Semizorova, and Grachova. Galina Ulanova also accepted a few invitations to coach in other countries such as Australia and Sweden. Basically a shy person, she worked quietly, watching her pupil, and, when needed, elegantly demonstrating the filigree detailing that makes a ballerina in the truest sense. She neatly drew out of each dancer their own individuality while instilling the high standards that she herself so brilliantly evidenced in a long and esteemed career.

Ulanova took an active role throughout her life in speaking out for dance, in writing about it, and as an authority on juries of international ballet competitions. She served on important international dance and artistic committees. She was honored many times and received the (former) Soviet Union's highest order, that of "Hero of Socialist Labor, " twice. But it is for her breath-taking, emotional, and magical dancing that she will always be remembered.

Born without a classic ballerina's body, she had big knees, square shoulders, and a short neck, but she had a commitment to tireless structured training within a rigorous system, which allowed her to reach the pinnacle of her art within the Soviet training program. She occupies a place with Margot Fonteyn and Natalia Markova as the supreme expression of the ballerina.

Further Reading

Ulanova has written, collaborated, and contributed to ballet literature in Ballerina's School (Moscow, 1954); Soviet Ballet (London, 1954); Prokofiev: Articles, Reminiscences (Moscow, 1956); The Bolshoi Ballet Story (1959); Ballet Today (London, 1957). She gave interviews of note to Dance Scene (1980) and Dancing Times (London, August 1983).

Books about Ulanova include Albert Kahn, Days with Ulanova (1962); M. Sizova, Ulanova: Her Childhood and Schooldays (London, 1962); Natalia Roslavleva, Era of Russian Ballet (London, 1966); Vladimir Golubov, Galina Ulanova's Dance (Leningrad, 1948); Yuri Sloniminsky, The Bolshoi Theatre Ballet (Moscow, 1956); Boris Lvov-Anokhon, Ulanova (Moscow and London, 1956); and Valerian Bogdanov-Berezovsky, Ulanova and the Development of Soviet Ballet (London, 1952) and Galina Sergeyevna Ulanova (Moscow, 1961).

Ulanova, Galina (b St Petersburg, 8 Jan. 1910, d Moscow, 21 Mar. 1998). Soviet dancer and teacher. One of the definitive Russian ballerinas of the 20th century. She was born the daughter of the ballet regisseur Serge Ulanov and the dancer Maria Romanova. She studied first with her mother (from 1919) and then with Vaganova at the St Petersburg Ballet School (the Petrograd Choreographic Institute). She graduated in 1928 into the Maryinsky Theatre company (then called the GATOB, later the Kirov). She danced the leading ballerina roles in Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, and Giselle and was acclaimed for her poetic sensitivity, her exceptional musicality, and her psychological exploration of character. But it was in the new Soviet ballets that she made her greatest impact. She created the role of Maria in Zakharov's The Fountain of Bakhchisarai (1934) and Coralie in his Lost Illusions (1936), Masha in Vainonen's The Nutcracker (1934) and—most significantly—Juliet in Lavrovsky's Romeo and Juliet (1940). During the Second World War she was evacuated to Perm with the Kirov Ballet (1941-2) and to Alma-Ata (1942-3). In 1944, however, she joined the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow where she remained until the end of her career. She created Tao-Hoa in Lavrovsky's new version of The Red Poppy (1949) and Katerina in his The Stone Flower (1954). It is said that Prokofiev was inspired by Ulanova when he wrote the scores for Romeo and Juliet and The Stone Flower. She made her first appearance in the West in 1945, with a trip to Vienna, and was the Bolshoi's leading ballerina when the company visited London in 1956 and New York in 1959. The response from Western critics was rapturous; the magnificence of her performances, even as she approached 50, confirmed her reputation as one of the world's leading ballerinas. She gave her farewell performance in 1962 but continued to work with the Bolshoi as ballet mistress and coach. Her pupils included Nina Timofeyeva, Ekaterina Maximova, Ludmila Semenyaka, and Nina Semizorova. As Soviet ballet's shining star, she became the most famous Russian ballerina of the postwar era and one of its most passionate spokesmen. Several films have captured her unique presence, among them Stars of the Ballet (1946), Ballerina (1947), Trio Ballet (1953), Romeo and Juliet (1954), and The Bolshoi Ballet (British film, 1957). She was chairman of the jury at the Varna international ballet competitions from 1964 to 1972. People's Artist of the USSR (1951). Lenin Prize (1957).

• Born: 1912 in Russia
• Occupation: Actor
• Active: '50s, '80s-'90s
• Major Genres: Dance
• Career Highlights: Russian Ballet: The Glorious Tradition, Vol. 2, The Magic of the Bolshoi Ballet, The Bolshoi Ballet
• First Major Screen Credit: Stars of the Russian Ballet (1953)

Biography

Galina Sergeyevna Ulánova (Russian: Галина Сергеевна Уланова; 7 January 1910 [O.S. 26 December 1909] – 21 March 1998) is frequently cited as being one of the greatest 20th Century ballerinas. Her flat in Moscow is designated a national museum, and there are monuments to her in Saint Petersburg and Stockholm.

Ulanova studied in Petrograd under Agrippina Vaganova and her own mother, a ballerina of the Imperial Russian Ballet. When she joined the Mariinsky Theatre in 1928, the press found in her "much of Semyonova's style, grace, the same exceptional plasticity and a sort of captivating modesty in her gestures".^[1] They say that Konstantin Stanislavsky, fascinated with her acting style, implored her to take part in his stage productions. In 1944, when her fame reached Stalin, he had her transferred to the Bolshoi Theatre, where she would be the prima ballerina assoluta for 16 years. The following year, she danced the title role in the world premiere of Sergei Prokofiev's Cinderella.

Galina Ulanova performing in Giselle.

Ulanova was a great actress as well as dancer, and when she was finally allowed to tour abroad at the age of 46, enraptured British papers wrote that "Galina Ulanova in London knew the greatest triumph of any individual dancer since Anna Pavlova". Having retired from the stage at the age of 50, she coached many generations of the Russian dancers. Ulanova was the only dancer to be awarded Hero of Socialist Labour, and she was also awarded the highest exclusively artistic national title, People's Artist of the USSR.^[2] She was awarded the Lenin or Stalin Prizes in 1941, 1946, 1947, 1950, and 1957.

The Ulanova's apartament in Moscow located in one of Seven Sisters, Kotelnicheskaya Embankment Building is preserved as a memorial museum now. Monuments to Ulanova were erected in Saint-Petersburg and Stockholm.

Contents 1 Opinions on Ulanova 2 Notes 3 Obituaries 4 Articles 5 External links

Opinions on Ulanova

• Sergey Prokofiev: She is the genius of Russian ballet, its elusive soul, its inspired poetry. Ulanova imparts to her interpretation of classical roles a depth of expression unheard of in twentieth century ballet.

• Evgeny Mravinsky: The image of Ulanova – gentle, fragile and wise - was given to me in my early youth and is rooted in my heart and memory forever. Each encounter with Ulanova and her art, each memory of her – is always a great thrill and happiness. With thanks to her and gratitude to Fate for having given her to us.

• Sviatoslav Richter: Ulanova has charted new paths in ballet …Not only has she given us unforgettable characters, she has created her own artistic world – a realm of human spirituality… Ulanova has transformed ballet into a popular art form. Thanks to her even its most implacable enemies have become its supporters and thousands of people now acknowledge ballet to be a vital necessity.

• Margot Fonteyn: I cannot even begin to talk about Ulanova’s dancing, it is so marvellous, I am left speechless. It is magic. Now we know what we lack.

• Maya Plisetskaya: Ulanova has created her own style, has schooled us to it. She represents an epoch, a time. She has her own hallmark. Like Mozart, Beethoven and Prokofiev she has had an impact, she has reflected her age.

• Arnold Haskell: My memories of Ulanova are, to me, a part of life itself, bringing a total enrichment of experience. To me, hers are not theatrical miracles but triumphs of human spirit. Where Pavlova was supremely conscious of her audience and could play upon its emotions as upon an instrument, Ulanova is remote in a world of her own, which we are privileged to penetrate. She is so completely identified with the character she impersonates that nothing outside exists.

• Maya Plisetskaya: She was an angel and she danced like one.

• Maurice Bejart: Galina Ulanova is a ballerina who has grasped the profoundest secrets of art, she has united feelings and their outer expression into an indivisible whole.

• Rudolf Nureyev: Only she, the world’s Number One ballerina, kept unswervingly to her chosen course, always unassuming, modestly dressed, entirely absorbed in dance and totally unreceptive to backstage intrigue. Her inner strength, her human qualities – these explain why she has remained pure, untouched by the day-to-day hassle of theatre life.

Notes

1. ^ "Rabochii i teatr", 1926, #9, p13
2. ^ Clarke, Mary and David Vaughan (eds) 1977. The encyclopedia of dance & ballet. Pitmans, London. p37 and 344.

Obituaries

• New York Times obituary

Articles

• Sunday New York Times by Anna Kisselgoff, March 29, 1998

External links

Galina Ulanova (1910-1998)

The Ballerina Gallery - Galina Ulanova

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