Virginia Zucchi: Difference between revisions
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| DATE OF BIRTH = 10 February 1849 |
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| DATE OF DEATH = 12 October 1930 |
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Revision as of 02:55, 15 November 2010
Virginia Zucchi (Parma, 10 February 1849 – Nice, 12 October 1930) was an Italian dancer. Her career as a ballerina spanned from 1864 to 1898, and she was known as "the Divine Virginia" for her artistry, expressiveness, and virtuosity.[1]
Zucchi studied ballet under Carlo Blasis in Milan,[2] She made her debut in 1864 in Varese and danced throughout Italy, as well as in Berlin and Paris. In 1885, she went to St. Petersburg to dance for the summer at Kin Grust. Zucchi became so popular and highly regarded from these appearances that she joined the Mariinsky Theatre in Russia from 1885 to 1888.[3] During these three years, she performed in many of Marius Petipa's ballets and ballet revivals, including The Pharaoh's Daughter (1885), La Fille Mal Gardée (1885) La Esmeralda (1886), and The King's Command or The Pupils of Dupré (1887). On one occasion under Petipa, Zucchi performed an entire solo en pointe.[4]
Of this period, Mary Clarke and Clement Crisp say:
- "Zucchi revolutionized ballet in Russia. The magic of her presence, the extraordinary emotional power of her performances gripped the imagination of the public and also other artists. Regrettably, she was [then] forbidden the Imperial stages by the Tzar's command because of a liaison with an aristocrat." [5]
After her tenure in the Mariinsky Theatre came to an end, Zucchi danced in Moscow and St. Petersburg with her own company in the late 1880s and the early 1890s. She also performed in the Palais Garnier (Opera of Paris) in 1895. Her final performance was in Nice in 1898. She also contributed to the development of the St. Petersburg ballet school, and her influence in this led to the school making greater demands of its dancers in terms of technical perfection.[2]
Zucchi later retired to Monte Carlo, becoming a teacher.[2] Her dancing influenced many ballerinas after her, including Mathilde Kschessinska. When Kschessinska first saw Zucchi in person, she said:
- "I was fourteen when the famous Virginia Zucchi arrived in St Petersburg. From the day that Zucchi appeared on our stage I began to work with fire, energy and application: my one dream was to emulate her. The result was that when I left the School I already had a complete mastery of technique." [6]
Notes
- ^ Suchanek, Isabel. "Bakst-Portrait of Virginia Zucchi". Retrieved 2009-06-24.
- ^ a b c Kassing, Gayle (2007). History of dance: an interactive arts approach. Human Kinetics. p. 145. ISBN 9780736060356.
- ^ Guest, 120
- ^ Leach, Robert (1999). A history of Russian theatre. Cambridge University Press. p. 189. ISBN 9780521432207.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ Clarke, Mary and Crisp, Clement 1981. The history of the dance. Orbit, London. p162
- ^ Scholl, Tim (1994). From Petipa to Balanchine: classical revival and the modernization of ballet. Routledge. ISBN 9780415092227.
References
- Guest, Ivor Forbes (1977). The Divine Virginia: A Biography of Virginia Zucchi. M. Dekker. p. 187. ISBN 9780824764920.