Migel Ballerinas

by Parmenia Migel

Portrays the personalities and careers of the great dancers against the general history of the ballet

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1972

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly, this was too gossipy, too little about the ballet itself. And the "... to Pavlova"? Well, yes, there is a mention of her but it's a sentence buried at the very end. Overall, not really worth it - unless, of course, you're interested in the love lives and backbiting at the Paris Opera (where the ballerinas all shone). After some long chapters about the lives about the various Mlles, where they were from and how they ascended the heights in Paris, whether they toured and which rivalries they participated in, sometimes - sometimes! - there was something about their contribution to moving dance forward. While it's clear that Paris was the center of the ballet world for a very long time, so many of the dancers profiled toured (London, St. Petersburg, Naples, etc.) that more about what was going on in those cities would have been helpful. It isn't until the final chapter, which quickly marches us through a century (perhaps) of Russian dance, that we really get a picture of what was going on in any other city.