Fokine, Michel

orig. Mikhail Mikhaylovich Fokine

(born April 23, 1880, St. Petersburg, Russia—died Aug. 22, 1942, New York, N.Y., U.S.) Russian-born U.S. dancer and choreographer. He trained at the Imperial Ballet School in St. Petersburg and debuted at the Mariinsky Theatre at age 18. Following his creation of for Anna Pavlova in 1905, he was in demand as a choreographer. When his ambitious scenario for a ballet on the story of Daphnis and Chloe was rejected, Sergey Diaghilev in 1909 engaged Fokine at the Ballets Russes in Paris, where he choreographed works such as (1910), (1911), and (1912). In these ballets he strove for a greater dramatic and stylistic unity than had been previously known. He moved to New York City in 1923 and thereafter choreographed works for companies in the U.S. and Europe.

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