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Elena Ivanovna Andreïanova , sometimes spelt Yelena Andreyanova (Russian Елена Ивановна Андреянова), 13 July 1819
St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...
- 28 October 1857
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, was a
Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...
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 dancer ...
. She is considered to be the outstanding Russian ballerina of the romantic genre, but her life was one full of tragedy.


Biography

Little is known about her childhood. At ten-years of age she entered the St. Petersburg Drama school. Among her teachers were Philippe Taglioni and his daughter
Marie Taglioni Marie Taglioni, Comtesse de Voisins (23 April 1804 – 22 April 1884) was a Swedish-born ballet dancer of the Romantic ballet era partially of Italian descent, a central figure in the history of European dance. She spent most of her life in t ...
. She graduated in 1837, and joined the
Mariinsky 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 ...
troop where she was the first Russian dancer to interpret the title roles in
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 ...
(1842), La Peri (1844 ) and
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 ...
(1847). She became the mistress of the Director of the Imperial Theater, Alexander Guedeonov. Antagonism developed between Guedenov and Andreianova when guest French ballerinas
Marie Taglioni Marie Taglioni, Comtesse de Voisins (23 April 1804 – 22 April 1884) was a Swedish-born ballet dancer of the Romantic ballet era partially of Italian descent, a central figure in the history of European dance. She spent most of her life in t ...
and
Fanny Elssler Fanny Elssler (born Franziska Elßler; 23 June 181027 November 1884) was an Austrian ''ballerina'' of the Romantic Period. Life and career She was born in Gumpendorf, a neighborhood of Vienna. Her father Johann Florian Elssler was a secon ...
, were given some of her parts and got acclaim from audiences instead of her. To placate his mistress, Guedenov sent her to star in the Moscow
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 company, ballet companies. In the early 20th century, it ca ...
. But here a new set of rivalries took hold. Fans of the Bolshoi ballerinas were upset that their favourite dancers were displaced by the St Petersburg dancers especially their
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 ...
Catherine Sankovski. They booed Andreïanova and during one performance, instead of throwing flowers they threw a dead cat on the stage. The shocked Andreianova fainted. The audience relented and gave a standing ovation. She stayed on for 15 years at the Bolshoi. She toured Europe in 1846 with a troop from the Bolshoi, appearing in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
,
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,
Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...
and
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
. She struck audiences with her combination of grace and fire. A dispute arose with management of 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 ...
, who not only did not pay her for her performances, but instead demanded a fee for giving the troop the opportunity to show their art. However this rebounded on the Paris Opera when Andreianova persuaded the leading Paris male ballet dancer
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 ...
to abandon Paris and join her troop. In Italy 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 ...
" and was rapturously received, medals were cast in her honour, something only given previously to the greatest performers like
Marie Taglioni Marie Taglioni, Comtesse de Voisins (23 April 1804 – 22 April 1884) was a Swedish-born ballet dancer of the Romantic ballet era partially of Italian descent, a central figure in the history of European dance. She spent most of her life in t ...
and
Fanny Elssler Fanny Elssler (born Franziska Elßler; 23 June 181027 November 1884) was an Austrian ''ballerina'' of the Romantic Period. Life and career She was born in Gumpendorf, a neighborhood of Vienna. Her father Johann Florian Elssler was a secon ...
. The French choreographer
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 ' ...
wrote two roles especially for her in his ballets: as the Black Fairy in ''Adana'' (1850), and the Countess Bertha in Wayward Wife (1851). In 1852 Andreyanova visited
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, but this tour turned out to be unsuccessful. Returning home, her relationship with Guedeonov ended when he took a new lover, and she was fired from the
Imperial Theatres Imperial Theatres of Russian Empire () was a theatrical organization financed by the Imperial exchequer and managed by a single directorate headed with a director; was pertain to the Ministry of the Imperial Court from 1742. The system operated i ...
in 1854. She decided to organise a tour of her own of the Russian provinces, taking with her artists from the Bolshoi Theatre and pupils from the Moscow Ballet School in a troop, led and managed by herself. The tour visited
Kharkiv Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.
,
Poltava Poltava (, ; , ) is a city located on the Vorskla, Vorskla River in Central Ukraine, Central Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Poltava Oblast as well as Poltava Raion within the oblast. It also hosts the administration of Po ...
,
Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
,
Voronezh Voronezh ( ; , ) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on the Southeastern Railway, which connects wes ...
,
Tambov Tambov ( , ; rus, Тамбов, p=tɐmˈbof) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Tambov Oblast, Central Federal District, central Russia, at the confluence of the Tsna River (Moksha basin), Tsna ...
 and
Odesa Odesa, also spelled Odessa, is the third most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern ...
. Andreyanova had the idea of a large two-act ballet for the tour called "''The Fountain of Bakhchisarai''" based on the poem of that name by
Alexander Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin () was a Russian poet, playwright, and novelist of the Romantic era.Basker, Michael. Pushkin and Romanticism. In Ferber, Michael, ed., ''A Companion to European Romanticism''. Oxford: Blackwell, 2005. He is consid ...
. Its premiere took place in Voronezh in 1854.  The tour was unexpectedly interrupted that same year in Odesa when the
Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...
threatened the city with bombardment. The troupe was disbanded and the tour was not a financial success which put a great strain on Andreyanova. The grueling demands of the tour undermined the health of many of the dancers but especially Andreyanova who bore the financial worries. She returned to St. Petersburg in ill health, and after some time, though still seriously ill, went to Paris for treatment. She never recovered her health and died in Paris in 1857 from nervous exhaustion at the young age of 38 years . She is buried at the
Pere Lachaise cemetery Pere may refer to: *Pere, Hungary, a village in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county *Pärtel-Peeter Pere (born 1985), Estonian entrepreneur, urban strategist, and politician *Rose Pere, Rangimārie Te Turuki Arikirangi Rose Pere (1937–2020), Māori New ...
in the
20th arrondissement The 20th arrondissement of Paris (known in French as the ''XXe arrondissement de Paris'' or simply as "''le vingtième''") is the last of the consecutively numbered arrondissements of the capital city of France. Also known as Ménilmontant () aft ...
. Her grave stone was chosen by herself shortly before her death and represents Giselle leaning against a cross. The Venusian crater Andreianova is named in her honor.


References


Elena Andreianova
- Entry in the
Great Soviet Encyclopedia The ''Great Soviet Encyclopedia'' (GSE; , ''BSE'') is one of the largest Russian-language encyclopedias, published in the Soviet Union from 1926 to 1990. After 2002, the encyclopedia's data was partially included into the later ''Great Russian Enc ...
, 3rd Edition (1970-1979), republished in English by The Free Dictionary. Accessed February 2016
Helena Andreyanova
Famous Women, May 2008. Accessed Feb 2016 * Andreyanova, Helena // Russian Biographical Dictionary : in 25 volumes. - SPb. - M ., 1896-1918. * Krasouskaya V. , "Russian ballet from the beginning to the middle of the XIX century", L. -M., 1958, p. 245-54. * Skalkovsky K, ''Dance, ballet, their history and place in a number of Fine Arts'',1886, chapter VIII, p. 206-22

{{DEFAULTSORT:Andreianova, Elena 19th-century ballet dancers from the Russian Empire Dancers from Saint Petersburg Russian prima ballerinas Ballerinas from the Russian Empire 1819 births 1857 deaths