Carolina Rosati (1826–1905) was an Italian ballet dancer who gained fame with 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 ...

and the

Imperial Ballet The Mariinsky Ballet () is the resident classical ballet company of the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in the 18th century and originally known as the Imperial Russian Ballet, the Mariinsky Ballet is one of the world's ...

in St Petersburg.

Early life

Carolina Galletti was born in

Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...

, Italy, on 13 December 1826. At the age of seven, she began training under Carlo Blasis. After she married her dancing partner Francesco Rosati, she was known as Carolina Rosati.

Career

In 1841, Rosati danced as

prima ballerina A ballet dancer is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet. They rely on years of extensive training and proper technique to become a part of a professional ballet company. Ballet dancers ...

at the Teatro Apollo in Rome. Two years later she appeared in

Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...

and

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

. She danced at

La Scala La Scala (, , ; officially , ) is a historic opera house in Milan, Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as (, which previously was Santa Maria della Scala, Milan, a church). The premiere performa ...

, Milan together with her husband in 1846. The same year she danced

Jules Perrot Jules-Joseph Perrot (18 August 181029 August 1892) was a French dancer and choreographer who later became Ballet Master of the Imperial Ballet in St. Petersburg, Russia. He created some of the most famous ballets of the 19th century including ' ...

's ''Pas de Quatre'' at

Her Majesty's Theatre His Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated in the Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The building, designed by Charles J. Phipps, was constructed in 1897 for the actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who ...

, London, where she also danced ''Fiorita et la Reine des Elfrides'' (1848) and ''La Prima ballerina'' (1849) which Paul Taglioni had created for her. She began dancing in Paris in 1851 appearing in a dance sequence in

Fromental Halévy Jacques-François-Fromental-Élie Halévy, usually known as Fromental Halévy (; 27 May 179917 March 1862), was a French composer. He is known today largely for his opera ''La Juive''. Early career Halévy was born in Paris, son of the cantor ...

's opera ''La Tempesta''. Two years later, after she had danced in

Joseph Mazilier Joseph Mazilier (1 March 1801 – 19 May 1868) was a 19th-century French dancer, balletmaster and choreographer. He was born as ''Giulio Mazarini''. He was most noted for his ballets ''Paquita'' (1844) and ''Le Corsaire'' (1856). He created the ...

's ''Jovita, ou les Boucaniers'', she was engaged by the

Paris Opera The Paris Opera ( ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be kn ...

as their latest star, apparently becoming the highest paid dancer at the time. She created roles in several of Mazilier's ballets in which her sense of drama was revealed to the full, as when she played Amalia in ''La Fonti'' (1855) or her highly successful Médora in ''Le Corsaire'' (1856). Above all, she received great acclaim in ''Marco Spada'' (1857) where she appeared with Amalia Ferraris. When her rival Angelina Fioretti arrived in Paris in 1859, she left for St Petersburg's Imperial Theatre where she appeared in ''Jovita'' and in ballets created for her by

Arthur Saint-Léon Arthur Saint-Léon (17 September 1821, in Paris – 2 September 1870) was the '' Maître de Ballet'' of St. Petersburg Imperial Ballet from 1859 until 1869 and is famous for creating the choreography of the ballet '' Coppélia''. Biography He ...

and

Théophile Gautier Pierre Jules Théophile Gautier ( , ; 30 August 1811 – 23 October 1872) was a French poet, dramatist, novelist, journalist, and art and literary critic. While an ardent defender of Romanticism, Gautier's work is difficult to classify and rema ...

. In 1862, she danced Aspicia in

Marius Petipa Marius Ivanovich Petipa (; born Victor Marius Alphonse Petipa; 11 March 1818) was a French and Russian ballet dancer, pedagogue and choreographer. He is considered one of the most influential ballet masters and choreographers in ballet history ...

's ''

The Pharaoh's Daughter ''The Pharaoh's Daughter'' (; ), is a ballet choreographed by Marius Petipa to music by Cesare Pugni. The libretto was a collaboration between Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Petipa from Théophile Gautier's ''Le Roman de la momie''. It ...

''. She also danced all the great classical roles in ''

Paquita ''Paquita'' is a ballet in two acts and three scenes originally choreographed by Joseph Mazilier to music by Édouard Deldevez and Ludwig Minkus. Paul Foucher received royalties as librettist. History ''Paquita'' is the creation of French c ...

'', ''

Giselle ''Giselle'' ( , ), originally titled ''Giselle, ou les Wilis'' (; ''Giselle, or The Wilis''), is a romantic ballet () in two acts with music by Adolphe Adam. Considered a masterwork in the classical ballet performance canon, it was first perfor ...

'', ''

Le Cheval de Bronze ''Le Cheval de bronze'' (''The Bronze Horse'') is an ''opéra comique'' by the French composer Daniel Auber, first performed on 23 March 1835 by the Opéra-Comique at the Salle de la Bourse in Paris. The libretto (in three acts) is by Auber's ...

'', '' La Somnabule'' and '' La Esmeralda''. She retired in 1862 and died in

Cannes Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...

in May 1905.

Assessment

The ''Oxford Dictionary of Dance'' describes her as "A plump, vivacious, and graceful dancer ... renowned for the precision of her pointe work, also for her expressive mime."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rosati, Carolina 1826 births 1905 deaths Italian female dancers People from Bologna Italian prima ballerinas Rosati 19th-century Italian ballet dancers 19th-century ballet dancers from the Russian Empire