The 11 Most Famous Ballet Dancers Of All Time
Ballet has a long-standing history and it wouldn't be such a celebrated piece of art if not due to the great dancers who paved the way for us. Today, we honor the most famous ballet dancers of all time.
Alicia Markova
Alicia Markova was the first-ever ballet dancer to receive the title prima ballerina assoluta. She debuted at a young age of 14 with Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes and was considered one of the top ballet dancers of the twentieth century. She performed in many lead roles such as Giselle, Swan Lake, and The Nutcracker. Markova was the founder dancer of the Royal Ballet, Rambert Dance Company, and American Ballet Theatre.
Anna Pavlova
A Russian prima ballerina, Anna Pavlova trained with the Imperial Ballet School at age 10. In school, she was made fun of for her long limbs, severely arched feet and thin ankles, which were in contrast to the small and compact body figure that dancers were favored for at the time. She graduated at 18 and made her official stage debut at the Mariinsky Theatre.
Pavlova became well known for her creation of 'The Dying Swan' and became the first ballerina to tour around the world. Due to her thin ankles, Pavlova strengthened her pointe shoes by adding a piece of hard leather on the sole for support. It has become the precursor for modern pointe shoes which is known as the shank.
Margot Fonteyn
Dame Margot Fonteyn, a British ballet dancer, was an iconic figure in ballet, known for her stage presence, technical perfection and precisely executed characterization. She was awarded the title prima ballerina assoluta by Queen Elizabeth II. Fonteyn trained at the Royal Ballet School and devoted her entire career as a dancer to the company, dancing late into her 40s. Choreographer Frederick Ashton constantly created works for her, including Fonteyn's first major role in Ashton's new work, Le Baiser de la Fee.
In 1965, Fonteyn rejuvenated her dance career with dancer Rudolf Nureyev, who was 19-years her junior. Their dance partnership became an international icon, both bringing out the best performances within each other. It was said that she achieved her greatest artistic triumph while performing the role of Juliet with Nureyev as Romeo, where they received 43 curtain calls within 40 minutes.
Yuanyuan Tan
Slender and elegant, Yuanyuan Tan was a celebrated dancer. She began her dance training at Shanghai Dance School and has multiple international awards up her sleeves; gold medal and the Nijinsky Award at the 1st Japan International Dance Competition and a gold medal at the 5th International Ballet in Paris.
At 18, Tan started her career as a soloist with the San Francisco Ballet and at 20, she was the youngest principal dancer in the history of San Francisco Ballet. She became the longest-running principal dancer, celebrating her 25th anniversary in the summer of 2021. The longevity of her career is due to her physical strength and grace.
Sylvie Guillem
One of France's most loved ballerinas, Sylvie Guillem was best known for her roles in Giselle, Swan Lake, and Don Quixote. From a young age, she was enrolled in gymnastics class and it was clear that she had the natural ability and gift for flexibility and physical movements.
She captured the attention of the director of the Paris Opera Ballet School in which she studied from 1977 to 1980. In 1981, she joined the Paris Opera Ballet Company and from then on, was on a fast track to success. She landed her first solo role after two years in the company at age 17, as the Queen of Driads in Don Quixote. Guillem was made an étoile by the director at the time, Rudolf Nureyev.
Sylvie Guillem joined the Royal Ballet as a principal guest artist, which gave her the flexibility and freedom to venture out of ballet. In the 1990s, she created a dance program for television called Evidentia, which was met with success. Guillem proves she is a dance powerhouse by working with many critically acclaimed modern and contemporary choreographers such as Akram Khan, William Forsythe and Mats Ek.
Misty Copeland
A mantle of role-model, Misty Copeland has lived a tough life as a child, but she came out without any rough edges. Her story defies all odds, starting ballet at 13 years old and becoming the first African-American principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre in their 75-years history.
As a child, Copeland showed star quality. She attended two summer workshops with ABT before becoming an official member of the company in 2000 and a soloist in 2007. Besides a world-class dancer, she is a world-renowned public speaker, celebrity spokesperson and author.
In 2014, she became a sponsored athlete by Under Armour and released her line of dancewear called M by Misty. In the next year, she was named Time's 100 Most Influential People in the World. Currently, she is one of the most celebrated female ballet dancers and role-model.
Carlos Acosta
Carlos Acosta was born in Cuba to an impoverished family as the eleventh child. He was a highly energetic child and to keep him out of trouble, his father enrolled him for dance training at a state-funded school.
He kick-started his career by dancing several leading roles with the English National Ballet, National Ballet of Cuba and Houston Ballet. In the year 1998, he joined the Royal Ballet and was appointed the director of Birmingham Royal Ballet in January 2020.
George Balanchine
George Balanchine is one of the Fathers of American ballet. He co-founded the New York City Ballet, the first American ballet school and company equal to their European counterpart. As a young boy, he studied music and composition at the Petrograd Conservatory where he worked with famous composer Igor Stravinsky.
After a serious knee injury, Balanchine served as a ballet master for Diaghilev's Ballets Russes in Moscow until 1929. In 1934, he founded the School of American Ballet and New York City Ballet with Lincoln Kirstein where he trained dancers to develop strong technique fused with his style. The first classical ballet piece that Balanchine choreographed in America was Serenade.
He continued to serve as the artistic director of the New York City Ballet until his death, producing 400 dance works in his career. Through his choreography, he introduced neo-classical ballet which is still pertinent in the 21st century.
Rudolf Nureyev
Rudolf Nureyev had an established international career as a ballet dancer, choreographer and director. He is a Russian ballet dancer that was born on a Trans-Siberian train. Nureyev started his career early with Kirov Ballet during the Soviet Era, which is now known as Mariinsky Ballet in Leningrad.
He was the first artist who defected from the Soviet Union. Nureyev danced with the Royal Ballet in London as the Principal Dancer and became the Director of the Paris Opera Ballet from 1983 to 1989. He continued to train and mentor young ballet dancers such as Sylvie Guillem. He is famous for his interpretation of Swan Lake, Giselle and La Bayadere. His famous partnership with Margot Fonteyn, who was 19 years his senior, is a statement of his mature artistry at a young age.
In his final years living with AIDS, he conducted Romeo and Juliet with the American Ballet Theatre in May 1992. Nureyev's final public appearance was five months later at the premiere of a new production of La Bayadere for the Paris Opera Ballet.
Mikhail Baryshnikov
Mikhail Baryshnikov was considered one of the most outstanding dancers of all time. He has paved the way for modern and multidisciplinary dance.
In June, while on tour with the Bolshoi, he defected to the West and joined the New York City Ballet as the principal dancer. He spent his time at the company working with George Balanchine's Russian style of movements. Later, he was appointed the artistic director at the American Ballet Theatre where he spearheaded many of his own artistic projects. In the year 1990, he co-founded the White Oak Dance Project.
Today, he is a widely celebrated and award-winning artist known for his contribution to dance, choreography, theatre and television.
Robert Joffrey
Robert Joffrey was an American dancer, choreographer and founder of the Joffrey Ballet. He started his dance training at 9 years old and went on to study ballet and modern dance in New York. Following that, he made his debut with Ballet de l'Opéra National de Paris in 1949. The hybrid between the grace of classical ballet and the raw emotions of modern dance has been maintained until today.
Besides commissioning original ballet and restructuring old classics, Joffrey introduced modern dance choreographers such as Alvin Ailey and Twyla Tharp to the ballet audience. Instead of a traditional ranking system, the ballet dancers at the Joffrey Ballet were considered an ensemble group, which means that they know the repertoire in different roles and could change roles easily. They were the first American company to perform the work of August Bournonville.
Our Most Famous Ballet Dancers
Of course this list of 11 most influential ballet dancers through history does not include everyone. There are many more ballet dancers who have served as inspiration. Who do you think should be on the list for most famous ballet dancers of all time?