Category Archives: Ballet History

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Famous Dancers and Asteroid Terpsichore

Anna Pavlova, courtesy of www.daykeeperjournal.com

Being an astrology buff, some time ago I found an intriguing article about the asteroid Terpsichore – which I’d never heard of – having prominent placement in the charts of more than several famous dancers. The article, from www.daykeeperjournal.com, is titled “Celestial Musings – Asteroid Terpsichore in the Natal Charts of Famous Dancers”. The author Alex Miller, writes about the charts of the legendary Nijinsky and Pavlova to Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire and into more modern times – mentions Michael Jackson.

Alex describes that Terpsichore “in the birth chart, …can show where we give delight a physical expression, as well as indicating a love of dance and movement if strongly aspected. Graceful, fluid motion can be a hallmark of individuals with Terpsichore prominent, whether channeled into formal dance education or not.”

Here are more highlights from the article:

“Terpsichore was one of the Nine Muses, bringers of inspiration in classical Greek mythology. According to Hesiod, the Muses are the offspring of Zeus and Mnemosyne, his Titaness aunt, whose name literally means “memory.” Mnemosyne was one of Zeus’ earliest conquests, predating his marriage to Hera, while he was still sowing his wild oats (though, in truth, Zeus was a lifelong sower!).

After overthrowing her 11 brothers and sisters and setting himself up as head deity of the Olympians, Zeus sought a way to preserve the memory of his accomplishments, keeping them ever green. So he sought out Mnemosyne, whom he wooed in the guise of a shepherd; the couple slept together on nine consecutive nights, and nine months later, the Muses were born, one each on nine consecutive days (divine conception and gestation varying somewhat from that of mortals).

In classic times the Greeks sorted out various areas of special influence among the originally undifferentiated nine sisters. Terpsichore (whose name means “delight in dance”) became the muse of dance and dramatic choral works. She is usually depicted as seated, with a lyre for accompaniment.

Given Muse Terpsichore’s rulership of dance, it’s not surprising to find that her asteroid namesake has an affinity with the astrological charts of famous dancers, from Isadora Duncan to Michael Jackson. Terpsichore in this capacity is often astrologically linked to the Sun, expressing the life force and creative core of the native, how they self-identify; to Venus, ancient ruler of dancers as well as the arts in general and all things of aesthetic sensibility or beauty; to Saturn, the career path and the ability to master skills; or to Neptune, modern ruler of dance, music and theatrical presentation.

Isadora Duncan, Scorpio Terpsichore trine Saturn: Isadora Duncan was considered by many to be the creator of modern dance. Although an American citizen, Duncan received little acclaim in her native country, but was famed throughout fin de siècle Europe, bursting on the Paris scene in 1900 to universal adulation. Duncan rejected the stiff formality of traditional ballet, deriding it as “ugly and against nature,” and developed an improvisational style that created a revolution in dance.

Born 27 May 1877, Isadora Duncan’s natal Terpsichore at 27 Scorpio is astrologically trine natal Saturn at 19 Pisces, identifying dance as pivotal in her career, as well as revealing her role as an educator.

Anna Pavlova, Terpsichore in Libra, trine Sun: Anna Pavlova and Vaslav Nijinsky were two early 20th century dancers who helped to establish Russian ballet as the finest in the world. Pavlova was widely regarded as the best classical ballerina of her day, a protégé of dance mogul Sergei Diaghilev of the Ballet Russe, and star performer of the Imperial Russian Ballet. She later created her own dance company and was the first ballerina to tour the globe. Her most famous performance was the creation of the lead role in “The Dying Swan” in 1905, a ballet based on the music  of Camille Saint-Saens.

Vaslav Nijinsky, Terpsichore in Aries conjunct Venus: Nijinsky was another protege of Diaghilev’s. He is often cited as the greatest male dancer of the 20th century. He frequently performed en pointe, that is, on tip-toe, a rare skill in male dancers, and was noted for his apparently gravity-defying leaps and the intensity of his performances, which may have had something to do with an erratic temperament that was later diagnosed as schizophrenia.

Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire, Terpsichore in opposing signs:  Born 10 May 1899, Fred Astaire’s natal Terpsichore at 27 Gemini conjoins Neptune at 23 Gemini, opposing Saturn at 22 Sagittarius. Ginger Rogers’ (born 16 July 1911) natal Terpsichore at 5 Sagittarius is sesquiquadrate to a Sun/Neptune conjunction at 23 and 21 Cancer, and squared Venus at 8 Virgo. Although not opposed by astrological degree, Astaire and Rogers’ Terpsichores in opposing signs made them the perfect dance partners, complementing each other’s strengths and compensating for their weaknesses.

Gene Kelly, Terpsichore in Pisces opposed Sun and Venus:  Gene Kelly shares the spotlight with Fred Astaire as one of America’s most prominent male dancers on film. Star of such popular hits as “Anchors Aweigh” (1945), “An American in Paris” (1951) and “Singin’ in the Rain” (1952), Kelly was noted for his athletic, energetic dance style and aggressive good looks.”

The article continues with dancers such as Rudolf Nureyev, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Ann Miller, Twyla Tharpe and more. For you astrology buffs or anyone interested in dance and dance history, I encourage you to read the full article – a most interesting read.

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100 Years of Le Sacre du printemps

New York Times Review
courtesy of Wikipedia

May 29, 1913 marked the premiere performance of Le Sacre du printemps, (the Rite of Spring), at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris. This first performance is legendary for the sensation it caused and near riot. Originally composed as a “ballet and orchestral concert work by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1913 Paris season of Sergei Diaghilev‘s Ballets Russes company; the original choreography was by Vaslav Nijinsky, with stage designs and costumes by Nicholas Roerich”. Now, 100 years later, the work continues to endure with many interpretations both orchestrally and in dance by many companies across the globe. And, “although designed as a work for the stage, with specific passages accompanying characters and action, the music achieved equal if not greater recognition as a concert piece, and is widely considered to be one of the most influential musical works of the 20th century” (quotes courtesy of Wikipedia).

From the original to contemporary, the three videos below start with a wonderful BBC documentary about the premiere performance. Interestingly, it brings out that the near riot in the audience was not spontaneous but that Diaghilev actually prepared the Parisians for 5 weeks before the premiere to hate this work and the resulting riot was exactly what Diaghilev had wanted.

Ballets Russe – Le Sacre du printemps, BBC documentary (pt 3 of 3)

 

Maurice Béjart, Béjart Ballet Lausanne, Le Sacre du printemps, 1970

 

Adonis Foniadakis, Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève, Le Sacre du printemps, 2013

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The Nureyev Exhibit in San Francisco

Rudolf Nureyev at his defection from Soviet Union 1961. Courtesy of Wikipedia.org

I’d waited months to see this celebrated event at the de Young Museum, and so one day shortly before it closed, I trekked over to San Francisco to view the Nureyev Exhibit. A sense of awe filled me as I walked toward the somewhat narrow opening to the exhibit, and then realized it had been designed to make one feel as if you were part of the production on stage or backstage waiting in the wings.

The entrance was marked by 4 spotlights pointing the way to the exhibit opening. Once through, I entered an almost magical world filled with some of his most opulent costumes (and those of his partners and fellow cast) marking his major ballets displayed in windows behind scrim. Along with videos set up and running of La Bayedère, Don Quixote and one in particular that caught my eye was a large screen with a continuous clip from Pierre Jordan’s 1972 film “Un danseur” (I Am a Dancer) of Nureyev in practice executing series after series of astounding jumps. Well worth the visit – one of the highlights (for me) was seeing how small Margot Fonteyn’s toe shoes really were!

Here are clips from what others had to say about the exhibit:

From musicandmirror.com:  “Lots of beautiful costumes, photographs, and filmed ballet clips spanning Nureyev’s career await. Most of the exhibit is laid out in groups of costumes from various ballets, each backed by a small scrim that makes you feel like you’re walking backstage and onstage, as if wandering through several set pieces…”

And, San Francisco Classical Voice (by Janice Berman):  “Rudolf Nureyev’s career was as extraordinary as the fact that many people no longer know about it. That will likely be remedied with the de Young Museum’s new exhibit, “Rudolf Nureyev: A Life in Dance,” which opened on Saturday, displaying 80 costumes from France, primarily doublets and tutus by famous designers, that he and his partners wore, along with performance photos.

Nureyev, who leapt into view in 1961, was the first dance superstar. His fan base created the phenomenon known as Rudimania. And he had a will, or some might say a whim, of iron.

He was a dancer both gifted and driven. He danced stunningly, then competently, and finally relentlessly, well beyond the moment when he should have stopped. He professed indifference to the critics who said the world’s greatest dancer was in the process of taking it all back. “I don’t want anybody, anytime, to tell me I should go away,” he told me once. “It’s not their life. I don’t tell them to go back to Harvard to study English.”

He was a famously mercurial dance director with a detailed knowledge of the great classical ballets from Imperial Russia. He brought them to the Paris Opera Ballet, where he was artistic director from 1983 to 1989, beginning with La bayadère, which, like other works he staged, was reproduced in other classical companies around the world. He revitalized the career of Royal Ballet prima ballerina assoluta Margot Fonteyn, twice his age, whose stardom, in exchange, helped bring him international prominence. They shared an artistic and personal (how personal, nobody seems to know) partnership that lasted 17 years.

So this exhibit, like Nureyev, transcends the narrative of a life cut short. His tombstone, at Saint-Genevieve-des-Bois cemetery near Paris, was created by Ezio Frigerio, who designed Nureyev’s final production of La bayadère for the Paris Opera Ballet. It’s a mosaic rendition of an oriental carpet, its folds draped over a traveler’s trunk.”

Finally, highlights from review in the Los Angeles Times (by Liesl Bradner):  “The exhibition features photographs, videos and other ephemera, but the stars of the show are 70 exquisite costumes from the ballets Nureyev danced in and choreographed, including “Swan Lake,” “The Nutcracker” and “Romeo and Juliet.” The opulent wardrobe pieces, valued from $45,000 to $95,000, are a testament to his obsession with detail.

He was incredibly particular when it came to his costumes. He knew exactly which fabrics to use,” said curator Jill D’Alessandro. “He believed the costume needed to finish the movement, so when the dancer stops, the costume should continue to move and float, like in Ginger Rogers’ feather number in his favorite scene from ‘Top Hat.’”

Rudolf Nureyev was often quoted as saying “you live as long as you dance”…this exquisite exhibit shows us the passion by which he lived.

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Nutcracker!

It’s that time of year again… when just about everyone who’s a dancer, dance student or dance lover is involved in a performance, knows someone who is, or is looking forward to being part of the audience for that much-loved Holiday tradition — The Nutcracker.

Ever wonder how it got to be so? George Balanchine is credited with making it a household name in the United States back in the 60’s… but where did it all begin before Balanchine arrived on the scene? (Here’s a hint:  with Tchaikovsky, Marius Petipa, Ivanov, Alexandre Dumas…)  Well, thanks to youtube.com, here’s the 3 minute version — thank you Youtube and Happy Holidays!