Donald MacLeary and Elizabeth Anderton 1964

Donald Whyte MacLeary (born 22 August 1937) is a retired British ballet dancer, a former principal dancer and a ballet master with 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 in ...

, where he was a member of the company for 48 years. Born in Glasgow, Donald MacLeary studied with Sheila Ross from 1950–51 and at the Sadler's Wells Ballet School. He joined

Sadler's Wells Theatre Ballet Birmingham Royal Ballet (BRB) is one of the five major ballet companies of the United Kingdom, alongside The Royal Ballet, the English National Ballet, Northern Ballet and Scottish Ballet. Founded as the Sadler's Wells Theatre Ballet, the company ...

in 1954. In 1955, he was promoted to soloist. In 1959, he became the

's youngest principal dancer, when Svetlana Beriosova requested that he become her regular partner. According to

Encyclopædia Britannica The ( Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various ...

, MacLeary was "noted for his strong finesse and natural romanticism". MacLeary created roles in: *Works by

John Cranko John Cyril Cranko (15 August 1927 – 26 June 1973) was a South African ballet dancer and choreographer with the Royal Ballet and the Stuttgart Ballet. Life and career Early life Cranko was born in Rustenburg in the former province of Tr ...

**''The Angels'' (1957) **''Antigone'' (1959) **''Brandenburg 2 & 4'' (1966) *Works by

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 ...

**''

Solitaire Solitaire is any tabletop game which one can play by oneself, usually with cards, but also with dominoes. The term "solitaire" is also used for single-player games of concentration and skill using a set layout tiles, pegs or stones. These gam ...

'' (1956) **''The Burrow'' (1958) **''Baiser de la fée'' (1960) **''Diversions'' (1961) **''Symphony'' (1963) **''Images of Love'' (1964) **''Checkpoint'' (1970) **''The Poltroon'' (1972) **'' Elite Syncopations'' (1974). MacLeary was ballet master of the Royal Ballet from 1975 or 1976 to 1979 and repetiteur to principal dancers from 1984. MacLeary retired at the end of the 2001/2002 season after 48 years with the Royal Ballet. He was appointed

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) in the

2004 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2004 were appointments by some of the Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrations ...

for services to dance.United Kingdom:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:MacLeary, Donald 1937 births Principal dancers of The Royal Ballet British male ballet dancers Officers of the Order of the British Empire Living people Ballet masters People educated at the Royal Ballet School 20th-century British ballet dancers