Alicia Markova

Dame Alicia Markova DBE (1 December 1910 – 2 December 2004) was a British ballerina, choreographer, director, and teacher of classical ballet. Born Lilian Alicia Marks in London, England, she was the eldest of four daughters of Arthur Marks and Eileen Marks, née Barry. The family resided in Finsbury Park at the time of her birth before settling in Muswell Hill in 1914. Markova began dancing in childhood on medical advice, as movement was recommended to strengthen her weak limbs. Her father constructed a stage in the family garden where she and her sisters performed together. At age nine, she attended a performance by Anna Pavlova and subsequently arranged to meet the ballerina. She made her stage debut at ten, playing Salome in the pantomime Dick Whittington and His Cat, billed as Little Alicia, the child Pavlova. In 1920, she began formal ballet training with Serafina Astafieva, a retired Ballets Russes dancer who had established the Russian Dancing Academy at The Pheasantry on King's Road, Chelsea.

At thirteen, Markova was observed in class by impresario Sergei Diaghilev during one of his visits to London to recruit new talent. She joined his Ballets Russes in Monte Carlo in 1925, one month after her fourteenth birthday. Diaghilev gave her the Russified stage name Alicia Markova, which she retained for the remainder of her life. Her debut with the company was as Little Red Riding Hood in spring 1925. Because of her age, a number of roles were specially choreographed for her. During her time with the Ballets Russes, she worked alongside figures including Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Igor Stravinsky, Sergei Prokofiev, Léonide Massine, George Balanchine, and Bronislava Nijinska.

Following Diaghilev's death in 1929, Markova returned to England and became the founder principal ballerina of The Ballet Club, established by Dame Marie Rambert. That company later became the Ballet Rambert and is now known as the Rambert Dance Company, the oldest established dance company in the United Kingdom. During this period, Markova performed works by Frederick Ashton, then at the beginning of his career. In 1931, she joined the newly founded Vic-Wells Ballet at Sadler's Wells, established by Ninette de Valois, a former Diaghilev colleague, where she formed a celebrated partnership with Anton Dolin. De Valois appointed Markova the company's first Prima Ballerina in 1933; that company is now the Royal Ballet. Markova is recognized, alongside Dame Margot Fonteyn, as one of only two English dancers to have been accorded the title of prima ballerina assoluta, and she was the first British dancer to serve as principal dancer of a ballet company.

After witnessing a 1932 Camargo Society performance of Giselle featuring Olga Spessivtseva and Dolin, Markova became deeply invested in the ballet, and her own premiere in the title role took place on New Year's Day 1934 at the Vic. Giselle became her most closely associated role, alongside The Dying Swan and Les Sylphides. In 1935, she and Dolin departed the Vic-Wells Ballet to establish the Markova-Dolin Company, which toured for two seasons, with Prince Wolkonsky joining as ballet master in 1936. In 1938, Markova joined the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, touring as the company's star ballerina, including extensive touring throughout the United States. During the Second World War, she re-formed Les Ballets Russes in the United States and appeared as a dancer with Dolin in the Hollywood film A Song for Miss Julie. She was also a key figure in the formation of American Ballet Theatre, dancing with the company during its early years.

In 1944, Markova appeared on Broadway in Seven Lively Arts, extending her performance career into the theatrical world of New York. In 1950, she and Dolin co-founded the Festival Ballet, a company created to bring ballet to audiences who would not otherwise have access to it, backed by businessman Julian Brunsweg. Dolin served as the company's first Artistic Director while Markova held the position of Prima Ballerina until 1952, continuing thereafter as a guest dancer until her retirement from professional performance. In 1960, she collaborated with Indian classical dancer Ram Gopal on a duet titled Radha-Krishna, drawn from Hindu mythology, in which she danced the role of Radha. Their collaboration is commemorated at the National Portrait Gallery in London, where her bronze bust stands beside his portrait. The Festival Ballet was renamed English National Ballet in 1989.

Markova retired from professional dancing in January 1963 at the age of 52. She subsequently worked as a teacher, director, and choreographer, staging ballets she had originally performed with the Ballets Russes and coaching dancers in roles she had created. She was appointed Professor of Ballet and Performing Arts at the University of Cincinnati and presented televised master classes. She served as a regular faculty member for residential ballet courses including the Yorkshire Ballet Seminars and the Abingdon Ballet Seminars, and held the position of President and regular guest teacher at the Arts Educational Schools in London and Tring. She was also a governor and guest teacher at the Royal Ballet School. Markova was the subject of the television program This Is Your Life on two occasions: in January 1960, when Eamonn Andrews surprised her at the Royal Festival Hall, and in October 1995, when Michael Aspel surprised her at the Royal Opera House in London. She died on 2 December 2004, one day after her ninety-fourth birthday.