David Drew (12 March 1938 – 16 October 2015) was an English

ballet dancer A ballet dancer is a person who practices the Art (skill), 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. B ...

and Principal Character Artist of

The Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded ...

Biography

Drew was born in London in 1938. He received his early training in dance at the Westbury School of Dancing in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

, before entering professional ballet training at the

Royal Ballet School The Royal Ballet School is a British school of classical ballet training founded in 1926 by the Anglo-Irish ballerina and choreographer Ninette de Valois. The school's aim is to train and educate outstanding classical ballet dancers, especially ...

. He was a dancer with The Royal Ballet for the entire duration of his career: he joined the company in 1955 and was promoted to Soloist in 1961 and to Principal in 1974. He retired from The Royal Ballet as a

Principal dancer A principal dancer (often shortened to principal) is a dancer at the highest rank within a professional dance company, particularly a ballet company. A principal may be either gender. The position is similar to that of ''Soloist (ballet), solois ...

following the 2002/2003 season, but continued to dance with the company as a Principal Character Artist and, in recognition of his long service to the company, he was also awarded the honorary title of Guest Artist. He contributed significantly to the improvement of the working conditions of the dancers notably during the redevelopment of

the Royal Opera The Royal Opera is a British opera company based in central London, resident at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. Along with English National Opera, it is one of the two principal opera companies in London. Founded in 1946 as the Covent G ...

House between 1997 and 1999. He was the union representative of

for 40 years. He retired as a dancer in 2012. Drew was a teacher of

pas de deux In ballet, a ( French, literally "step of two") is a dance duet in which two dancers, typically a male and a female, perform ballet steps together. The ''pas de deux'' is characteristic of classical ballet and can be found in many well-known ...

at the

, the founder President of the Ballet Association, and in 2006, he was awarded the MBE for services to dance. He was married to actress

June Ritchie June Rose Ritchie (born 31 May 1941) is a British actress. Early life She attended Stretford Children's Theatre from the age of nine. She left school in Manchester, aged 16, to train as a secretary, working for the Manchester Ship Canal Comp ...

. He died on 16 October 2015.

Repertoire

Created roles

* ''The Captain'' in ''Different Drummer'', choreographed by Sir

Kenneth MacMillan Sir Kenneth MacMillan (11 December 192929 October 1992) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer who was artistic director of the Royal Ballet in London between 1970 and 1977, and its principal choreographer from 1977 until his death. Ea ...

* ''Colonel Middleton'' in ''

Mayerling Mayerling is a small village (pop. 200) in Lower Austria belonging to the municipality of Alland in the district of Baden (district of Austria), Baden. It is situated on the Schwechat river, in the Vienna Woods, Wienerwald (''Vienna woods''), so ...

'', choreographed by Sir Kenneth MacMillan * ''Demetrius'' in '' The Dream'', choreographed by Sir

Frederick Ashton Sir Frederick William Mallandaine Ashton (17 September 190418 August 1988) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer. He also worked as a director and choreographer in opera, film and revue. Determined to be a dancer despite the oppositio ...

* ''The Gaoler'' in ''

L'histoire de Manon ''L'histoire de Manon'', generally referred to as ''Manon'', is a ballet choreographed by Kenneth MacMillan to music by Jules Massenet and based on the 1731 novel '' Manon Lescaut'' by Abbé Prévost. The ballet was first performed by The Roya ...

'', choreographed by Sir Kenneth MacMillan * ''Giles'' in ''

The Crucible ''The Crucible'' is a 1953 play by the American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Province of Massachusetts Bay from 1692 to 1693. Miller wrote ...

'', choreography by William Tuckett * ''Grand Master'' in ''Rituals'', choreographed by Sir Kenneth MacMillan * ''Max Merz'' in ''

Isadora Isidora or Isadora is a female given name of Greek origin, derived from Ἰσίδωρος, ''Isídōros'' (a compound of Ἶσις, ''Ísis'', and δῶρον, ''dōron'': "gift of he goddessIsis"). The male equivalent is Isidore. The name surviv ...

'', choreographed by Sir Kenneth MacMillan

Other roles

* ''Anastasia'' – The Husband * ''La Bayadère'' – The Rajah and The Brahmin * ''Cinderella'' – Ugly Sister and Cinderella's Father * ''Cyrano'' – de Guiche * ''Don Quixote'' * ''Enigma Variations'' – Nevinson * ''The Firebird'' – Kostcheï * ''Giselle'' – Hilarion and the Duke of Courtland * ''Job'' – Satan * ''

La fille mal gardée LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second most populous city in the United States of America. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note *"L.A.", a song by Elliott Smi ...

'' – Thomas * ''Manon'' – Monsieur G.M. * ''Marguerite and Armand'' – The Father * ''Mayerling'' – Emperor Franz-Josef * '' A Month in The Country'' – Yslaev * ''Petrushka'' – The Conjurer * ''The Prince of the Pagodas'' – The Emperor's Chancellor * ''Romeo and Juliet'' – Friar Laurence,

Mercutio Mercutio ( , ) is a fictional character in William Shakespeare's 1597 tragedy, ''Romeo and Juliet''. He is a close friend to Romeo and a blood relative to Prince Escalus and Count Paris. As such, Mercutio is one of the named characters in the ...

, Lord Capulet and Tybalt * ''The Sleeping Beauty'' – Catalabutte and The King * ''Swan Lake'' – Baron von Rothbart * ''The Tales of Beatrix Potter'' – Mrs Pettitoes * ''Winter Dreams'' – Doctor Chetbutkin

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Drew, David People educated at the Royal Ballet School Principal dancers of The Royal Ballet English male ballet dancers Members of the Order of the British Empire Dancers from London People educated at Bristol Grammar School 1938 births 2015 deaths