Konstanze Vernon (2 January 1939 – 21 January 2013) was a German ballet dancer, academic teacher and director of a ballet academy and a ballet company. She was from 1963 to 1981 prima ballerina of the ballet at the
Bayerische Staatsoper. She taught at the
Hochschule für Musik München and founded the ballet academy ''Heinz-Bosl-Stiftung'' in memory of her partner on stage
Heinz Bosl. After retiring from the stage, she was founding director of the now independent ballet company .
Career
Vernon was born in Berlin, the daughter of musicologist
Friedrich Herzfeld. At age 6 she became a student of
Tatjana Gsovsky.
She was a member of the Berlin Ballet at the
Berlin State Opera
The Staatsoper Unter den Linden ( State Opera under the Lime Trees), also known as the Berlin State Opera (), is a listed building on Unter den Linden boulevard in the historic center of Berlin, Germany. The opera house was built by order of P ...
at age 14, and at age 17 the company's youngest soloist.
engaged her at the
Bayerische Staatsoper, where she was prima ballerina from 1963 to 1981. Her main partners on stage were
Winfried Krisch and
Heinz Bosl. Her interpretations of major parts of the classical and contemporary repertory are remembered, including the title part of ''
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 ...
'', Tatjana in
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 to Herbert and Grace Cranko in Rustenburg in ...
's choreography of ''
Onegin'', and the heroine in Gerhard Bohner's ''Die Folterungen der Beatrice Cenci''.
She taught at the
Hochschule für Musik München, during her career as a lecturer, afterwards as professor and director of the ''Ballett-Akademie München''.
In memory of Bosl, who died in 1975, she founded in 1978 the ballet academy ''Heinz-Bosl-Stiftung'' (Heinz Bosl Foundation).
She succeeded in separating the ballet company of the Staatsoper, forming the independent and serving as its director from 1988 to 1998.
In 2010 she retired from the Ballett-Akademie München and founded the Junior Company (), a bridge between academic ballet training and professional dancers, to serve the needs of young dancers at the beginning of their careers.
Vernon died in Munich.
Awards
* 1962 Serge Lifar Prize of the ''Academie de Danse'', Paris, as the first German to receive the prize
* 1982
Bayerischer Verdienstorden
* 1991
Deutscher Tanzpreis
The Deutscher Tanzpreis (German Dance Prize) is a prestigious prize for artistic dance in Germany. It has been awarded annually since 1983.
The ''Deutscher Berufsverband für Tanzpädagogik'' awarded the prize until 2012. From 2013 to 2017, it wa ...
* 1993
Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art
The Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art () was first established on 28 November 1853 by King Maximilian II von Bayern. It is awarded to acknowledge and reward excellent and outstanding achievements in the field of science and art. From ...
* 1998 Honorary member of the Bayerische Staatsoper
* 2006 Culture prize of the
* 2007
Bayerische Verfassungsmedaille in Gold
References
External links
*
Heinz-Bosl-Stiftung
Bayerische Staatsoper
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vernon, Konstanze
German ballerinas
Academic staff of the University of Music and Theatre Munich
1939 births
2013 deaths
20th-century German musicians
20th-century German women