Video: The scandalous glory of Serge Lifar: How an emigrant from Kiev became a world ballet star, and for which he was sentenced to death
2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55
April 2 marks the 114th anniversary of the birth of the world famous dancer, choreographer and choreographer Serge Lifar … He was born and raised in Kiev, and became famous and gained recognition in Paris, where he emigrated at the age of 18. He revived and reformed the French ballet school, becoming a world-class star, but was sentenced to death in wartime. And this was not the only scandal that erupted around the name of Serge Lifar. In Europe he was considered the god of dance, and in the USSR - a traitor to his homeland.
At birth, he received the name of Sergei Mikhailovich Lifar. The future dancer was born in 1904 near Kiev, probably in the village of Pirogovo. He learned the basics of ballet in the Kiev ballet sections, and his fate as a dancer was decided by joining the troupe with the sister of the famous Vaslav Nijinsky. In 1922, Bronislava Nijinska emigrated to France, and soon invited her best students to follow her, including Sergei Lifar. He crossed the border illegally, he was shot and wounded, but he managed to escape. He got to Paris with practically no money, but there he was accepted into his troupe by Sergei Diaghilev, who saw in him a new ballet star.
Diaghilev was not mistaken in his favorite: in the Russian Ballet entreprise he went from being a corps de ballet dancer to the first soloist and choreographer, and at the age of 24, after Diaghilev's death, Lifar became the head of the ballet troupe of the Grand Opera of Paris. He was a very strict leader, his innovations shocked many: he forbade admitting latecomers into the hall after the start of the performance, canceled encore appearances and did not allow artists to give flowers - so that the success of one of them would not arouse the envy of others, and due to the fact that what . Serge Lifar became an innovator and reformer of French ballet, essentially reviving it and freeing it from outdated canons. Lifar is called the founder of neoclassicism in dance.
During the German occupation in 1939, the Parisian troupe, led by Lifar, continued to work, which caused a bad reputation for the dancer in Europe. In wartime, in 1943, Lifar presented the premiere of the ballet "Suite in White". As a result, the French Resistance Movement in London accused the dancer and choreographer of collaboration. Lifar was sentenced to death. He had to leave Farntia, and from 1944 to 1947. he was hiding from the verdict in Monte Carlo, where he headed the troupe of the New Ballet.
After the war, Lifar's case was reviewed, the charge was declared fabricated, and the sentence was overturned. The dancer and choreographer was able to return to Paris and take up his former position. He has staged more than 200 ballets, his productions ("Suite in White", "Bacchus and Ariadne", "Icarus", "On the Dnieper") entered the repertoire of many theaters around the world. Serge Lifar became a world-class star, but at the same time he never forgot his roots. "", - he wrote in his diary.
Moreover, when French President Charles de Gaulle suggested that the dancer and choreographer become a citizen of France, given that he had done for this country no less than any other famous Frenchman, Lifar refused: ""
Serge Lifar's talent was multifaceted: in addition to the talent of a dancer, he had the ability to paint. In 1972-1975. exhibitions of his paintings were held in Cannes, Paris, Monte Carlo and Venice. In addition, the ballet dancer was fond of collecting rare books. From the personal archive of Sergei Diaghilev he got collections of theatrical painting and scenery, he himself collected a large collection of old printed books of the 16th-19th centuries, which his heirs donated to Ukraine. Lifar was also engaged in teaching: he taught a course in the history and theory of dance at the Sorbonne, was the author of works on the history and theory of classical dance.
Serge Lifar passed away in December 1986 in Lausanne at the age of 82. His name was erased from the history of Russian culture for many years, since in the USSR he was considered a traitor to his homeland. He managed to visit Kiev only 40 years after leaving abroad. He wrote about this trip in his memoirs: "".
It is believed that Serge Lifar became the star of the ballet thanks to Diaghilev's "Russian Seasons": How the Impresario's Favorites Become Recognized Ballet Soloists.
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