Les Ballets 1933 was a

ballet company A ballet company is a type of dance troupe which performs classical ballet, neoclassical ballet, and/or contemporary ballet in the European tradition, plus managerial and support staff. Most major ballet companies employ dancers on a year-round ba ...

started by Boris Kochno and George Balanchine, which Balanchine used to create new works that were completely his own, set to music that no one had yet choreographed. The company ran for less than four weeks in 1933 and tailored itself to small, wealthy audiences in Paris (the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées) and London (

Savoy Theatre The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre was designed by C. J. Phipps for Richard D'Oyly Carte and opened on 10 October 1881 on a site previously occupied by the Savoy P ...

), but despite its scale, it came out with works that Balanchine later used to instruct at his School of American Ballet, and in the programs of his later companies. Outside a theatre for Les Ballets, Balanchine first met Lincoln Kirstein.Reynolds, Nancy. "Ballets 1933." ''The International Encyclopedia of Dance''. Ed. Selma J. Cohen. Oxford University Press, 2005. Wollman Library, Barnard College. Web. 11 July 2013.

History

Kochno and Balanchine came directly out of the Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo, owned by René Blum and Colonel W. de Basil, for which Kochno had been the librettist and Balanchine the choreographer, until de Basil dismissed them both.Homans, Jennifer
"René Blum: Life of a Dance Master,"
''New York Times'' (July 8, 2011).

Tamara Toumanova Tamara Toumanova ( ka, თამარა თუმანოვა; 2 March 1919 – 29 May 1996) was a Georgian-American prima ballerina and actress. A child of exiles in Paris after the Russian Revolution of 1917, she made her debut at the ag ...

, a dancer and a strong admirer of Balanchine, followed the collaborators from the Ballets Russes, and remained a great inspiration for Balanchine. At first afraid to not find funding, Kochno and Balanchine relied on a few contributions from friends, including

Coco Chanel Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel ( , ; 19 August 1883 – 10 January 1971) was a French fashion designer and businesswoman. The founder and namesake of the Chanel brand, she was credited in the post-World War I era with popularizing a sporty, c ...

and Cole Porter. Quickly, however, they found themselves in the hands of young and affable

Edward James Edward Frank Willis James (16 August 1907 – 2 December 1984) was a British poet known for his patronage of the surrealist art movement. Early life and marriage James was born on 16 August 1907, the only son of William James (who had inherite ...

, husband of

Tilly Losch Ottilie Ethel Leopoldine Herbert, Countess of Carnarvon (''née'' Losch; November 15, 1903 – December 24, 1975), known professionally as Tilly Losch, was an Austrian dancer, choreographer, actress, and painter who lived and worked for most of ...

, a dancer trained at the Vienna Opera Ballet who specialized in character and exotic roles. As James became head patron (without his money the ballet wouldn't have been able to run for its season), Losch became a head dancer and it was "her" ballet company. James, who received little admiration from Losch, hoped that he could gain her love by ensuring that direct relationship. When Les Ballets opened, it found itself in the midst of mixed reviews. Some thought the company youthful, on account of Balanchine; others thought it extravagant. Even Kirstein was skeptical, as he decided that Balanchine was "no Fokine."Buckle, Richard; and John Taras. ''George Balanchine Ballet Master''. New York: Random House, 1988. Print. Overall, most of the reviews were bad, and the ballet ended its season with no profit. Tensions between performers heightened, and the ballet needed to close. However, the ballet's end did bring about the start of the American Ballet, as Kirstein met Balanchine, and brought the choreographer to the United States.

Notable figures and works

Dancers for Les Ballets included

Tamara Tchinarova Tamara Tchinarova ( tr. Chinarova, russian: Тамара Чинарова), also known as Tamara Finch, (18 July 1919 – 31 August 2017) was a Romanian-born émigré Russian and French ballerina who contributed significantly to the developmen ...

, Diana Gould,''Sydney Morning Herald'', "She chose to be a great fiddler’s moll"
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Pearl Argyle Pearl Argyle (born Pearl Wellman; 7 November 1910 – 29 January 1947) was a South African ballet dancer and actress. Remembered today primarily for her extraordinary beauty, she appeared in leading roles with English ballet companies in the 1930s ...

, Prudence Hyman, Elizabeth Schooling, and Betty Cuff.Menuhin, Diana. "Dance Research: The Journal of the Society for Dance Research." jstor.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 July 2013. The popular singer was

Lotte Lenya Lotte Lenya (born Karoline Wilhelmine Charlotte Blamauer; 18 October 1898 – 27 November 1981) was an Austrian-American singer, diseuse, and actress, long based in the United States. In the German-speaking and classical music world, she is best ...

. Composers ranged from Kurt Weill to

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

, and designs were notable, with costumes by

Barbara Karinska Varvara Jmoudsky, better known as Barbara Karinska or simply Karinska (October 3, 1886 – October 18, 1983), was the Oscar-winning costumier of cinema, ballet, musical and dramatic theatre, lyric opera and ice spectacles. Over her 50 year caree ...

. Kochno built elaborate decorations for the ballets. One critic described the magnitude of the art in a green dress in the ballet, which Losch wore, as having an “atmospheric beauty." Les Ballets produced six new ballets, each with a score by a different composer: * ''L'Errante'' (

Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wo ...

) — lighting by Pavel Tchelitchew; Losch performed as head dancer * ''Fastes'' (

Henri Sauguet Henri-Pierre Sauguet-Poupard (18 May 1901 – 22 June 1989) was a French composer. Born in Bordeaux, he adopted his mother's maiden name as part of his professional pseudonym. His output includes operas, ballets, four symphonies (1945, 1949 ...

) — Toumanova featured * ''Mozartiana'' (

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most pop ...

) — Toumanova featured; most enduring of the company's ballets; in 1956, the Danilova company reproduced it * ''Les sept péchés capitaux'' ("

The Seven Deadly Sins The seven deadly sins is a classification of vices used in Christian teachings. Seven deadly sins may also refer to: Art * ''The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things'', a 1485 painting by Hieronymus Bosch * '' The Seven Deadly Sins of Moder ...

") ( Kurt Weill) — libretto by Bertolt Brecht (Weill and Brecht's last collaboration); Losch performed as head dancer, and

sang * ''Les songes'' (

Darius Milhaud Darius Milhaud (; 4 September 1892 – 22 June 1974) was a French composer, conductor, and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as ''The Group of Six''—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His compositions ...

) — Toumanova featured * ''Les valses de Beethoven'' (

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

) All the ballets premiered in early June 1933 at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées,

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

,Taper, pp. 421-422. and in late June at the

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ballets 1933, Les Ballet companies Ballets Russes and descendants

History

Notable figures and works

See also

References