Pierina Legnani (30 September 1863 – 15 November 1930) was an Italian

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 ...

considered one of the greatest ballerinas of all time.

Biography

Legnani was born in 1863, in

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 ...

and originally studied with famous ballet dancer Caterina Beretta 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 ...

, where she developed her technical expertise. Her professional career took off when she appeared as prima ballerina in the Casati ballet, Salandra, at

Alhambra Theatre The Alhambra Theatre was a popular theatre and music hall located on the east side of Leicester Square, in the West End of London. It was built as the Royal Panopticon of Science and Arts, opening on 18 March 1854. It was closed after two yea ...

in London. She was titled prima ballerina for La Scala in 1892, before moving to St Petersburg in 1892, where she reached fame dancing with 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 ...

at the Maryinsky Theatre until 1901. Under the direction of famous ballet choreographer

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 ...

, Legnani originated numerous roles including, ''

Cinderella "Cinderella", or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a Folklore, folk tale with thousands of variants that are told throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsin Press, 1988. The protagonist is a you ...

'' in 1893, ''

Swan Lake ''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoje ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, links=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failu ...

'' in 1895, ''

Raymonda ''Raymonda'' () is a ballet, grand ballet in three acts, four scenes with an apotheosis, originally choreographed by Marius Petipa to the music of Alexander Glazunov (his Opus number, opus 57) and libretto by Lydia Pashkova. ''Raymonda'' was creat ...

'' in 1898, and '' La Camargo'' in 1901. She is widely reputed to be the first ballerina to perform 32 fouettés en tournant in the '' coda'' of the Grand Pas d'action of the ballet ''Cinderella''. The execution of 32 turns on pointe is a

bravura In classical music a bravura is a style of both music and its performance intended to show off the skill of a performer. John Alexander Fuller-Maitland, ''A dictionary of music and musicians (A.D. 1450-1889)'p. 271-272/ref> Commonly, it is a vir ...

achievement emphasizing the dancer's strength and technique. A sequence of 32 fouetté turns was later choreographed into the Black Swan solo in act 3 of ''Swan Lake'' and is still used to this day. Legnani was one of only two ballet dancers appointed ''

prima ballerina assoluta ''Prima ballerina assoluta'' is a title awarded to the most notable of female ballet dancers. To be recognised as a ''prima ballerina assoluta'' is a rare honour, traditionally reserved for the most exceptional dancers of their generation. Orig ...

'' at the Maryinsky Theatre. Her last performance was in the Minkus/Petipa ballet ''La Camargo'' on 28 January 1901, after which she retired to live in her villa at

Lake Como Lake Como ( , ) also known as Lario, is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the third-largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore. At over deep, it is one of the deepest lakes in Europe. ...

. After retiring from the stage she lived in Italy and served on the examining board of La Scala Ballet School until 4 months before her death. She died on 15 November 1930, aged 67.

Repertoire

Ballets of

featuring Pierina Legnani: *''

'' from Petipa/

Ivanov Ivanov, Ivanoff or Ivanow (masculine, , Sometimes the stress is on Ива́нов in Bulgarian if it is a middle name, or in Russian as a rare variant of pronunciation), or Ivanova (feminine, , ) is one of the most common surnames in Russia and Bu ...

/Cecchetti (music by Fitingof-Shell, 1893), Legnani was the first to establish 32 fouettés en tournant. *'' The Talisman'' (music by

Riccardo Drigo Riccardo Eugenio Drigo (; 30 June 1846 – 1 October 1930) was an Italian composer of ballet music and Italian opera, a theatrical Conducting, conductor, and a pianist. Drigo is most noted for his long career as kapellmeister and Director of Mu ...

, 1895) *''La Perle'' (music by Drigo, 1896) *''

'' (music by

Alexander Glazunov Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov ( – 21 March 1936) was a Russian composer, music teacher, and conductor of the late Russian Romantic period. He was director of the Saint Petersburg Conservatory between 1905 and 1928 and was instrumental i ...

, 1898) *''Les ruses d’amour'' (music by Glazunov) *''

Coppélia ''Coppélia'' (sometimes subtitled: ''La Fille aux Yeux d'Émail'' (The Girl with the Enamel Eyes)) is a comic ballet from 1870 originally choreographed by Arthur Saint-Léon to the music of Léo Delibes, with libretto by Charles-Louis-Éti ...

'' (version from Petipa/Cecchetti, music by

Léo Delibes Clément Philibert Léo Delibes (; 21 February 1836 – 16 January 1891) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer, best known for his ballets and French opera, operas. His works include the ballets ''Coppélia'' (1870) and ''Sylvia (b ...

, 1896) *''The Cavalry Halt'' (music by Johann Armsheimer, 1896)

Gallery

File:Cinderella -title role -Pierina Legnani -1893.jpg, Legnani in the title role of ''Cinderella''. St. Petersburg, 1893. File:LegnaniInCinderella.jpg, Legnani in the title of ''Cinderella''. St. Petersburg, 1893. File:Pierina Legnani.jpg, Legnani as the

Tsar Maiden ''The Maiden Tsar'' (, Tsar-Maiden, Tsar-Maid) is a character in East Slavic folktales. It is best known from Alexander Afanasyev's eight-volume collection ''Narodnye russkie skazki'' (1855—1863), folktale "Царь-девица"; variants reco ...

in Petipa's revival of '' The Little Humpbacked Horse''. St Petersburg, 1895. File:Legnani-whitepearl.jpg, Legnani as the White Pearl in ''La Perle'', a ballet created for the coronation of Nicholas II. Moscow, 1896. File:Pierina Legnani in Raymonda, act I, 1898 - "Danse du voile".JPG, Legnani in the title role of ''Raymonda''. St. Petersburg, 1898. File:Corsaire -Pavel Gerdt as Conrad -Pierina Legnani as Medora -Alfred Bekefi as Pasha -1899.jpg, Legnani as Medora in Petipa's final revival of ''Le Corsaire'', with

Pavel Gerdt Pavel Andreyevich Gerdt (), also known as Paul Gerdt (22 November 1844, near Saint Petersburg, Russia – 12 August 1917, in Vamaloki, Finland, Russian Republic), was the ''Premier Danseur Noble'' of the Mariinsky Ballet, Imperial Ballet, the Bol ...

as Conrad (left) and Alfred Bekefi as the Saïd Pasha (right). St. Petersburg, 1899. File:Pierina Legnani-Camargo-1901.jpg, Legnani in the title role of ''La Camargo'', revived by Lev Ivanov. St. Petersburg, 1901. File:Legat and Legnani Camargo.jpg, Legnani in the title role of ''La Camargo'' with

Nikolai Legat Nikolai Gustavovich Legat () (30 December 1869, in Moscow – 24 January 1937, in London) was a ballet dancer, choreographer and teacher. Life and career Nikolai Legat was born to a family of Swedish origin, all of whom were dancers—h ...

as Vestris. St. Petersburg, 1901

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Legnani, Pierina Prima ballerina assolutas Italian ballerinas Mariinsky Ballet principal dancers 1863 births 1923 deaths