Massine: A Biography"For twenty-five years after his Paris debut in 1914, Leonide Massine (1895-1979) was indisputably the premier male dancer and chief choreographer of Europe. Now, just as revivals of his ballets are reconfirming his status, historian Vicente Garcia-Marquez gives us a well-rounded, definitive biography that places Massine firmly in the mainstream of twentieth-century cultural history." "Onstage, he was widely praised for indelible performances in roles he created for himself (Joseph in The Legend of Joseph, the Miller in Le Tricorne, and the Chinese Conjuror in Parade are only a few) and as the choreographer of other perennial repertory favorites (such as Le Beau Danube, Gaite parisienne, Scuola di ballo). In the 1930s his choreography took an innovative and controversial turn with the creation of Les Presages, Choreartium (both recently revived in France and America), and Symphonie fantastique - ballets whose grandiose combination of symphonic music, metaphysical scenarios, and spectacularly complex movement patterns and configurations polarized the critics and the public." "Massine's collaborations with the major creative spirits of our time - including Diaghilev, Stravinsky, Falla, Cocteau, Picasso, Matisse, Miro, and Dali - were integral to his life and art, and each of these giants has a role in this book. So too does Michael Powell, the British filmmaker who, fortunately for us, recorded some of Massine's most brilliant characterizations, in The Red Shoes and The Tales of Hoffmann."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved |
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Aleko American Anatoli Petrovich artistic audience Balanchine ballerina Ballet London Ballets Russes Basil Beau Danube Beaumont became began Bolchakov Bolshoi character Choreartium choreographer classical Cocteau collaboration composer created creative dance dancers decor Delarova Denby Denham deux Diaghilev and Massine felt film Fokine Galli ghilev Gontcharova Gorsky Ibid Imperial Theater impresario July Knopf Kochno La Boutique fantasque La Scala Larionov later Leonid Léonide Massine Letter from Massine Lopokova Lydia Sokolova Madrid Maly Manuel de Falla Massine in conversations Massine's Matisse ment Mikhail Misia Monte Carlo Moscow movement Nijinsky opera painting Parade Paris pas de deux performance Petrouchka Picasso played Powell premiere Présages private collection production Pulcinella rehearsal repertory revival role Rome Russe de Monte Russian scene scenery and costumes Schéhérazade score season sine Sokolova Spanish stage Stravinsky style symphonic ballets Symphonie fantastique Symphony Tatiana Teatro theatrical tion took tour Tricorne wrote York