Colette Janine Marchand (29 April 1925 – 5 June 2015) was a French

prima ballerina A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on ye ...

and actress. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1952 for her performance as Marie Charlet in ''

Moulin Rouge Moulin Rouge (, ; ) is a cabaret in Paris, on Boulevard de Clichy, at Place Blanche, the intersection of, and terminus of Rue Blanche. In 1889, the Moulin Rouge was co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Paris Ol ...

'', directed by John Huston. During the height of her dance career she was considered one of the greatest dancers in Europe, known as ''Les jambes'' (The Legs), along with Violetta Elvin,

Zizi Jeanmaire Renée Marcelle "Zizi" Jeanmaire (29 April 192417 July 2020) was a French ballet dancer, actress and singer. She became famous in the 1950s after playing the title role in the ballet ''Carmen'', produced in London in 1949, and went on to appear ...

, Yvette Chauviré, Janine Charrat, and

Margot Fonteyn Dame Margaret Evelyn de Arias DBE (''née'' Hookham; 18 May 191921 February 1991), known by the stage name Margot Fonteyn, was an English ballerina. She spent her entire career as a dancer with the Royal Ballet (formerly the Sadler's Wells ...

. Marchand traveled around the world as a dancer and danced with many of the greatest ballet dancers of the 1940s and 1950s.

Personal life

Marchand was born in Paris, France, the daughter of Alice ( née Lioret) and Roger Marchand. She began her career at the

Paris Opera Ballet The Paris Opera Ballet () is a French ballet company that is an integral part of the Paris Opera. It is the oldest national ballet company, and many European and international ballet companies can trace their origins to it. It is still regarded a ...

She married Jacques Bazire, the musical director for the Roland Petit Ballet. She died on 5 June 2015, aged 90, and was survived by her sister, Yvonne (Marchand) Le Bras.Colette Marchand obituary
nytimes.com; accessed 23 June 2015.

Career

She performed as a première ballerina on Broadway in

Roland Petit Roland Petit (13 January 192410 July 2011) was a French ballet company director, choreographer and dancer. He trained at the Paris Opera Ballet school, and became well known for his creative ballets. Life and work The son of shoe designer Ros ...

's Les Ballets de Paris (1949 & 1950). In the 1950 show, Marchand performed a ballet piece titled ''The Boiled Egg'', for which she received rave reviews. In 1951 she had a featured role in the Broadway musical ''

Two on the Aisle ''Two on the Aisle'' is a musical revue with a book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Jule Styne. The project marked Comden and Green's return to Broadway following their successful reign at MGM (where they penned the class ...

'' which ran for 276 performances. In the early 1950s while performing on Broadway, Marchand was featured in several magazines, including

Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...

, and would make appearances on New York City television shows, including the ''Ford Star Revue'', the ''Colgate Comedy Hour'', and the ''

Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in September 1971 by the '' CBS Sunday Night ...

''. In 1951 she lent her voice to

Isidore Isou Isidore Isou (; 29 January 1925 – 28 July 2007), born Isidor Goldstein, was a Romanian-born French poet, dramaturge, novelist, film director, economist, and visual artist who lived in the 20th century. He was the founder of Lettrism, an art ...

's ''

Venom and Eternity ''Venom and Eternity'' (french: Traité de Bave et d'Éternité, lit=Treatise on Slobber and Eternity) is a 1951 French avant-garde film by Isidore Isou that grew out of the Lettrist movement in Paris. It created a scandal at the 1951 Cannes Film F ...

''. In 1952, she received a Golden Globe Award as Most Promising Newcomer - Female for her performance in ''

'', as well as a nomination for the BAFTA for Most Promising Newcomer. In 1953 she was directed by

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...

in '' The Lady in the Ice''. Her other film appearances were rare: '' Hungarian Rhapsody'', ''Par Ordre du Tsar'' and the musical short ''Romantic Youth'' (also as choreographer) (all 1954).

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Marchand, Colette 1925 births 2015 deaths 20th-century French actresses Prima ballerinas New Star of the Year (Actress) Golden Globe winners French film actresses Actresses from Paris French ballerinas Dancers from Paris