Fonteyn, Dame Margot

Fonteyn, Dame Margot
orig. Margaret Hookham

born May 18, 1919, Reigate, Surrey, Eng.
died Feb. 21, 1991, Panama City, Pan.

British ballerina.

She debuted with the Vic-Wells Ballet (later Royal Ballet) in 1934 and soon became its leading dancer, creating many roles in works by Frederick Ashton, including Horoscope, Symphonic Variations, and Ondine. In the 1960s she won worldwide acclaim for her appearances with Rudolf Nureyev in ballets such as Swan Lake, Raymonda, and Le Corsaire. She continued to dance as a guest artist into the mid 1970s.

* * *

▪ British ballerina
original name  Margaret Hookham, married name Dame Margot Fonteyn De Arias 
born May 18, 1919, Reigate, Surrey, Eng.
died Feb. 21, 1991, Panama City, Panama

      outstanding ballerina of the English stage.

      As a child she studied dance in Hong Kong and then in London with Serafima Astafieva and at the Sadler's Wells Ballet school. Her debut was with the Vic-Wells Ballet in 1934. When Markova left the company the following year, Fonteyn took over many of her classical roles, including Giselle, and became a leading danseuse of the Vic-Wells Ballet. In 1939 she danced Aurora in a revival of The Sleeping Beauty; her interpretation is still considered the definitive Aurora of the era.

      Apart from the classical repertoire, she created many roles in such ballets by Frederick Ashton as Horoscope, Symphonic Variations, Daphnis and Chloë, and Ondine (considered by many her greatest creation) and gave outstanding performances in revivals of Fokine's Firebird and Petrushka. Other ballets associated with her career are Kenneth MacMillan's Romeo and Juliet (1965) and John Cranko's Poème de l'extase (1970) and, with the Soviet expatriate Rudolf Nureyev as partner, Swan Lake, Raymonda, Le Corsaire pas de deux, and other classics in addition to new ballets created especially for them. Her musicality, technical perfection, and precisely conceived and executed characterizations made her an international star, the first developed by an English school and company.

      After 1959 she appeared with the Royal Ballet as guest artist and also toured extensively. Her celebrated partnership with Nureyev began in the early 1960s and is generally considered to have enriched her characterizations. In 1955 she married Roberto Emilio Arias, former Panamanian ambassador to Great Britain. She became president of the Royal Academy of Dancing in 1954 and was created Dame of the Order of the British Empire in 1956. In the late 1970s, as she began to curtail her performing, she turned to television presentations and to the writing of such books as Margot Fonteyn: Autobiography (1975), A Dancer's World (1979), and The Magic of Dance (1979). She remained active in the world of dance until her death.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Fonteyn,Dame Margot — Fon·teyn (fŏn tānʹ), Dame Margot. 1919 1991. British ballerina who joined the Royal Ballet in 1934 and began her acclaimed partnership with Rudolf Nureyev in 1962. * * * …   Universalium

  • Fonteyn, Dame Margot — orig. Margaret Hookham (18 may. 1919, Reigate, Surrey, Inglaterra–21 feb. 1991, Ciudad de Panamá, Panamá). Bailarina británica. Debutó con el Vic Wells Ballet (más tarde, Royal Ballet) en 1934 y pronto llegó a ser su primera bailarina,… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Dame Margot Fonteyn — Margot Hookham …   Eponyms, nicknames, and geographical games

  • Dame Margot Fonteyn — noun English dancer who danced with Rudolf Nureyev (born in 1919) • Syn: ↑Fonteyn • Instance Hypernyms: ↑dancer, ↑professional dancer, ↑terpsichorean …   Useful english dictionary

  • dame — /daym/, n. 1. (cap.) (in Britain) a. the official title of a female member of the Order of the British Empire, equivalent to that of a knight. b. the official title of the wife of a knight or baronet. 2. (formerly) a form of address to any woman… …   Universalium

  • Dame — (as used in expressions) Andrews, Dame Julie Ashcroft, Dame Peggy Christie, Dame Agatha (Mary Clarissa) Compton Burnett, Dame Ivy Cooper, Dame Gladys De Valois, Dame Ninette Dench, Dame Judi(th Olivia) Evans, Dame Edith (Mary) Fields, Dame Gracie …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Margot Fonteyn — (1948) Dame Margot Fonteyn, ab 1955 Fonteyn de Arias, DBE (* 18. Mai 1919 in Reigate, Surrey, England; † 21. Februar 1991 in Panama Stadt, Panama; eigentlich Margaret Hookham) war eine britische Balletttänzerin ( …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Margot Fonteyn — au Ballet Mariinsky de Saint Pétersbourg en 1948 Dame Margot Fonteyn (18 mai 1919 21 février 1991), danseuse britannique, fut une des grandes danseuses classiques de son époque. Formée à la Royal Ballet School de Lo …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Fonteyn — [fän tān′] Dame Margot (born Margaret Hookham) 1919 91; Eng. ballerina …   English World dictionary

  • Margot Fonteyn — This article is about the British prima ballerina assoluta. For the medieval trouvère, see Dames Margot and Maroie. Dame Margot Fonteyn de Arias DBE Margot Fonteyn in 1948 Born Margaret Hookham 18 May 1919 …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”