Alicia Markova

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Alicia Markova as " Dying Swan " (November 24, 1948, photography, Carl Van Vechten )
Alicia Markova 1972 (Photo: Alan Warren)

Dame Alicia Markova , DBE (born December 1, 1910 in London , † December 2, 2004 in Bath ) was an English prima ballerina of classical ballet .

Life

Markova was born as Lillian Alicia Marks to Irish-Jewish parents on December 1, 1910 in London. From the age of eight she received ballet lessons on medical advice due to problems with her legs. Her classmates also included Serafima Astafieva and Enrico Cecchetti.

It was discovered a few years later by Dyagilev . He hired the 14-year-old for his Ballets Russes and toured all of Europe with her . At the time she was the youngest member of his ballet ensemble. It was also he who changed her name to Markova without her consent, since as a non-Russian she needed a Russian name.

After Dyagilev's death, she returned to England in 1929 . In the following years she danced with the Ballet Rambert and the Vic Wells Ballet . She later founded the Markova-Dolin Ballet with Anton Dolin , with whom she had already worked with the Ballets Russes and the Vic Wells Ballet . Her appearances in Giselle , Schwanensee or Romeo and Juliet were celebrated.

Between 1938 and 1946 she danced, with a few brief interruptions, at the American Ballet Theater . After the Second World War she was a co-founder of the Festival Ballet .

In 1963, Queen Elizabeth II awarded her the title of Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire . In the same year she retired as a dancer. Until then, she had danced all the great roles of a ballet dancer. The 1.58 meter tall dancer never weighed more than 44 kilograms during her active time.

Despite her retirement, however, she continued to work as a ballet teacher. From 1963 to 1970 she worked at the Metropolitan Opera in New York . Her autobiography titled Markova headed Giselle and I .

Markova died of a cerebral haemorrhage the day after her 94th birthday.