Ballets Russes

Léon Bakst: Firebird, Ballerina, 1910

The Ballets Russes (French for The Russian Ballets) was a ballet company established in 1909 by the Russian impresario Serge Diaghilev. It performed until his death in 1929. It was initially resident in the Théâtre Mogador and Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris and then moved to Monte Carlo. Its members originated from the Tsar's Imperial Ballet of St. Petersburg, where all its dancers were associated and trained. Younger dancers were trained in the Russian tradition in Paris, with the community of exiles after the Russian Revolution. The company used many of the works of the great choreographer Marius Petipa.

It created a sensation in Western Europe because of the great vitality of Russian ballet compared to French dance. The Ballets Russes became one of the most influential ballet companies of the 20th century, in part because of its ground-breaking artistic collaboration among contemporary choreographers, composers, artists, and dancers. Its works were part of the avant-garde culture in Paris and France. That influence, in one form or another, has lasted to this day.

After Diaghilev's death, the company's property was claimed by creditors. The dancers were scattered. Colonel Wassily de Basil and his associate René Blum revived the company under the name Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo. George Balanchine and Leonide Massine worked with them as choreographers and Tamara Toumanova as a principal dancer. De Basil and Blum argued constantly, so Blum founded another company under the name Original Ballet Russe.

During World War II the Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo toured extensively in the United States, giving Americans a strong impression of what was known as "Russian Ballet." When dancers retired and left the company, they often founded dance studios in the United States or South America, or taught at other dancers' studios. With Balanchine's founding of the New York City Ballet, many former Ballet Russes de Monte Carlo dancers went to New York to teach.

The Original Ballet Russe toured mostly in Europe. Its alumni were influential in teaching classical Russian ballet technique in European and British schools.

The ballet company and artistic collaboration

The company consisted of 13 members, all at a very high standard of dance. The dancers and choreographers associated with it included George Balanchine, Mathilde Kschessinska, Michel Fokine, Vera Karalli, Tamara Karsavina, Serge Lifar, Alicia Markova, Léonide Massine, Vaslav Nijinsky, Anna Pavlova, Ida Rubinstein and Lydia Lopokova.

The company invited contemporary artists to design sets and costumes, including Bakst, Benois, Braque, Gontcharova, Picasso, Chanel, Matisse, Derain, Miro, de Chirico, Dalí, Bilibin, Tchelitchev, Utrillo and Nicholas Roerich.

In another collaboration, Diaghilev and his choregraphers worked with contemporary composers, who included Debussy, Milhaud, Poulenc, Prokofiev, Ravel, Satie, Respighi, and Richard Strauss. Perhaps the most notable was Igor Stravinsky, whom Diaghilev spotted when he was virtually unknown. By hiring Stravinsky, Diaghilev helped launch his career in Europe and later the United States. Stravinsky's scores for ballets The Firebird and Rite of Spring shocked Paris audiences and the latter caused a near riot.

Principal productions

Russian Ballet, by August Macke (1912). The ballet being danced appears to be Carnaval.

Year Title Composer Choreographer Set and costume 1909 Le Pavillon d'Armide Nikolai TcherepninMichel Fokine Alexandre Benois1909 Prince Igor Alexander BorodinMichel Fokine Nicholas Roerich1909 Cléopatre Anton ArenskyMichel Fokine Léon Bakst1910 The FirebirdIgor Stravinsky Michel Fokine Alexandre Golovine, Léon Bakst 1910 Schéhérazade Rimsky-KorsakovMichel Fokine Léon Bakst 1910 Carnaval Robert SchumannMichel Fokine Léon Bakst 1911 PetrushkaIgor Stravinsky Michel Fokine Alexandre Benois 1911 Le Spectre de la Rose Carl Maria von WeberMichel Fokine Léon Bakst 1912 L'après-midi d'un fauneClaude Debussy Michel Fokine, Vaslav Nijinsky Léon Bakst, Odilon Redon1912 Daphnis et ChloéMaurice Ravel Michel Fokine Léon Bakst 1912 Le Dieu Bleu Reynaldo HahnMichel Fokine Léon Bakst 1912 Thamar Mily BalakirevMichel Fokine Léon Bakst 1913 JeuxClaude Debussy Vaslav Nijinsky Léon Bakst 1913 Le sacre du printempsIgor Stravinsky Vaslav Nijinsky Nicholas Roerich 1913 Tragédie de Salomè Florent SchmittBoris Romanov Sergey Sudeykin1914 La légende de Joseph Richard Strauss Michel Fokine Léon Bakst 1914 Le Coq d'Or Rimsky-Korsakov Michel Fokine Natalia Goncharova1915 Soleil de Nuit Rimsky-Korsakov Léonide Massine Mikhail Larionov1917 ParadeErik Satie Léonide Massine Pablo Picasso 1919 La boutique fantastique Gioachino Rossini, Ottorino Respighi Léonide Massine André Derain 1919 El Sombrero de Tres Picos(aka Le Tricorne) Manuel de FallaLéonide Massine Pablo Picasso 1920 Le chant du rossignol Igor Stravinsky Léonide Massine Henri Matisse1920 PulcinellaIgor Stravinsky Léonide Massine Pablo Picasso 1921 Chout Sergei Prokofiev Mikhail Larionov Mikhail Larionov 1921 Sleeping Princess Pyotr TchaikovskyMarius Petipa Léon Bakst 1922 RenardIgor Stravinsky Bronislava NijinskaMikhail Larionov 1923 Les NocesIgor Stravinsky Bronislava Nijinska Natalia Goncharova 1924 Les BichesFrancis Poulenc Bronislava Nijinska Marie Laurencin1924 Les Fâcheux Georges AuricBronislava Nijinska Georges Braque 1924 Le train bleu Darius Milhaud Bronislava Nijinska Laurens (scene), Coco Chanel(costumi), Pablo Picasso (fondali) 1925 Les matelots Georges Auric Léonide Massine Pruna 1926 Jack in the Box Erik Satie George Balanchine André Derain 1927 La chatte Henri SauguetGeorge Balanchine Naum Gabo1927 Mercure Erik Satie Léonide Massine Pablo Picasso 1927 Pas d'acier Sergei Prokofiev Léonide Massine George Jaculov 1928 Apollon musagète Igor Stravinsky George Balanchine Bauschant (scene), Coco Chanel (costumi) 1929 Le fils prodigue Sergei Prokofiev George Balanchine Georges Rouault Dance Portal

External links

Danza Ballet: Especial The Ballet Russes
Ballet Russes (2005), documentary covering the history of the Ballets Russes, Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and Original Ballet Russe from the former's inception through the latter's end, featuring many interviews with surviving dancers of the company - IMDB listing
JM Barrie and the Russian Dancers – article by Robert Greenham about Barrie's play The Truth about the Russian Dancers and his friendships with the prima ballerinas of Ballets Russes, Lydia Lopokova and Tamara Karsavina.

Categories: Ballet companies | Organizations established in 1909