A biography from ArtandCulture.com
Alexandra Danilova was the first of George Balanchine's lifetime of muses. Balanchine created 18 ballets
for her, the first of which was 1921's "Poeme." The partially spoken-word piece was one of the first
"modern ballets" -- and positioned Danilova as the first of the 'modem" ballerinas.
Born to wealthy parents in pre-revolutionary Russia, Danilova was an orphan by the time she entered
the imperial Ballet School at the age of eight. The October revolution landed on her most formative years,
but did not set her back much. Modern creature that she was, she adapted when the imperial Ballet School
became the Vaganova school and the imperial Ballet became the Kirov. The newly formed Soviet State
Dancers accepted Danilova as a soloist in 1922. However, her big break came during a tour to Germany
in 1924, when Serge Diaghilev co-opted her little company -- which also included the married George
Balanchine -- into his Ballets Russes. Balanchine and Danilova began a romantic and artistic collaboration
that would result in the most exciting roles of her career.
With the face of a movie starlet and legendary gams (they supposedly merited standing ovations),
Danilova went on to win show-stopping popularity as the prima ballerina of the Ballets Russes in all
of its incamations. She gave her last performance in 1957 at the age of 54, and then gave her vast
knowledge of the classical repertoire to a teaching career, She served as choreographer for the
Metropolitan Opera and was one of the best-loved teachers at Balanchine's School of American
Ballet (she re-created this role in the 1977 film, "The Turning Point"). In 1974, she and Balanchine
co-created a rarity for the New York City Ballet: a revival of the classical "Coppelia," which has been
lovingly re-staged in homage to them both, She died in 1997 at 93, still bearing her trademark elegance.
Cincinnati Ballet, as part of its 35th anniversary season, will perform Paquita, the one-act ballet by Alexandra Danilova, in April.
Ms. Danilova, ballerina, teacher and choreographer, died last Sunday at her Manhattan home. She was 93.
Paquita will be staged by Ms. Danilova's longtime dance partner, Frederic Franklin.
Ms. Danilova was born in Russia and danced with the Maryinsky Ballet (now known as Kirov Ballet.) In 1924, she, George Balanchine and several other dancers left the Soviet Union to dance in Europe with Diaghilev's Ballet Russe. Ms. Danilova and Mr. Balanchine lived together until 1931, but never married. He was still married to dancer Tamara Geva at the time.
After Diaghilev's death, Ms. Danilova joined the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, and danced in Cincinnati many times, sponsored by local patron Julius Fleischmann. The group performed during the late 1930s to early '50s.
Ms. Danilova received a Dance Magazine Award in 1984. The magazine described her career as having "expanded to mythic proportions and touched almost every aspect of the dance business."
Her exquisite dancing and effervescence, both on- and off-stage, have been talked about throughout her career. She was often described as glamorous and dazzling. Jennifer Dunning, New York Times dance critic, described her as a "legendary, beloved performer."
P.W. Manchester, local dance historian and longtime friend of Ms. Danilova, remembers when Paquita was first taught to Cincinnati Ballet dancers in 1979.
"I remember they came (Ms. Danilova and Mr. Franklin) to set the pas de deux in Paquita and they danced in their ordinary (street) clothes. They were so beautiful that we all cried. She had that ability. If she wanted to make you cry she could, and if she wanted you to laugh she could do that too. She was a wonderful demi-caractere dancer— an actress."
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