June 6
Born Today:
Ninette de Valois
Ballerina Ninette de Valois (1898-2001) joined the original Ballets Russes from 1923-1927, and relocated afterwards to London to open a school. She partnered with theatre owner Lilian Baylis to create the Vic-Wells Ballet and the Sadler’s Wells Ballet School, precursors of the Royal Ballet company and school, respectively. In 1933, de Valois retired from the stage to devote herself to growing the organization, which received a royal charter in 1956. De Valois was determined to have her company perform classical ballet repertoire from Russia, including Swan Lake (1876) and The Sleeping Beauty (1889), and she hired choreographer Frederick Ashton (1904-1988) to create ballets with a distinctively British style, including Ondine (1958), Symphonic Variations (1946), and The Dream (1964). Although her energies were focused on creating a foundation for ballet to flourish in the UK, she was also instrumental in the establishment of ballet in Turkey, and she helped to develop the Turkish State Ballet.
Also Born Today: Russian ballerina and folk dancer Nadezhda Nadezhdina (c.1908-1979) founded an all-female dance troupe Beroyzka, who enchanted audiences with their ability to walk on their toes under long dresses, appearing to float across the stage. Ballet dancer Hugh Laing (1911-1988) was the partner of choreographer Antony Tudor (1908-1987) and appeared in many of his works, including Lilac Garden (1936), Dark Elegies (1937), and Pillar of Fire (1942).