Elizaveta Pavlovna Gerdt (russian: Елизавета Павловна Гердт; – 6 November 1975) was a Russian dancer and teacher whose career links the Russian imperial and Soviet schools of classical dance. A daughter of celebrated dancer Paul Gerdt, she studied under

Michel Fokine Michael Fokine, ''Mikhail Mikhaylovich Fokin'', group=lower-alpha ( – 22 August 1942) was a groundbreaking Imperial Russian choreographer and dancer. Career Early years Fokine was born in Saint Petersburg to a prosperous merchant and a ...

at the

Imperial Ballet School The Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet is a school of classical ballet in St Petersburg, Russia. Established in 1738 during the reign of Empress Anna, the academy was known as the Imperial Ballet School until the Soviet era, when, after a brief h ...

, where her chief partner was

Vaslav Nijinsky Vaslav (or Vatslav) Nijinsky (; rus, Вацлав Фомич Нижинский, Vatslav Fomich Nizhinsky, p=ˈvatsləf fɐˈmʲitɕ nʲɪˈʐɨnskʲɪj; pl, Wacław Niżyński, ; 12 March 1889/18908 April 1950) was a ballet dancer and choreog ...

. She married another popular danseur, Samuil Adrianov (1884-1917; the first husband), who danced with

Pierina Legnani Pierina Legnani (September 30, 1863 – November 15, 1930) was an Italian ballerina considered one of the greatest ballerinas of all time. Biography Legnani was born on September 30, 1863, in Milan and originally studied with famous ballet dan ...

and

Mathilde Kschessinska Mathilde-Marie Feliksovna Kschessinska ( pl, Matylda Maria Krzesińska, russian: Матильда Феликсовна Кшесинская; 6 December 1971; also known as Princess Romanovskaya-Krasinskaya after her marriage) was a Polish ...

, two ballerinas she sought to emulate. After the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...

Elizaveta Gerdt and

Olga Spessivtseva Olga Alexandrovna Spessivtseva (russian: Ольга Алекса́ндровна Спеси́вцева; 16 September 1991) was a Russian ballerina whose stage career spanned from 1913 to 1939. She was one of the finest prima ballerinas of the t ...

were the only world-class dancers who chose to remain in Russia, while others emigrated to the West. In 1928, after 20 years of dancing, she resolved to abandon the stage and devote herself to teaching. She taught the class of perfection for the female dancers in the Leningrad Opera and Ballet Theatre together with teaching the girls in her Alma mater (1927-1934). Then she moved from Leningrad to Moscow. There she taught the class for the female dancers at the

Bolshoi Theatre The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, literally "Big Theater", p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈatər) is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds ballet and ope ...

, coaching

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 yea ...

s of the

Bolshoi Ballet The Bolshoi Ballet is an internationally renowned classical ballet company based at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia. Founded in 1776, the Bolshoi is among the world's oldest ballet companies. In the early 20th century, it came to internatio ...

and also worked at the Moscow Ballet School (1935-1942 and 1945-1960). Among her students were

Alla Shelest Alla Yakovlevna Shelest (russian: Алла Яковлевна Шелест; 26 February 1919 – 7 December 1998) was a Citizenship of Russia, Russian Ballet dancer, ballerina, Choreography, choreographer and dance director, "a star of the Kirov Ba ...

(in Leningrad), Irina Tikhomirnova,

Maya Plisetskaya Maya Mikhailovna Plisetskaya (russian: link=no, Майя Михайловна Плисецкая; 20 November 1925 – 2 May 2015) was a Soviet and Russian ballet dancer, choreographer, ballet director, and actress. In post-Soviet times, she he ...

, Violetta Bovt, Mira Redina, Raisa Struchkova, Ekaterina Maksimova (in Moscow). With some of them she continued to collaborate at the theatre. Thus she coached Sulamith Messerer and later her niece

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gerdt, Elizaveta 1891 births 1975 deaths Ballerinas from the Russian Empire Ballet teachers Vaganova graduates Soviet ballerinas

See also

References