On this day in ...... 1910 (100 years ago today), a daughter, Galina Ulanova (right), was born to 2 dancers in St. Petersburg, Russia. She made her début as a ballerina at age 18 in the city of her birth, by then called Leningrad, and would become the Soviet Union's 1st prima ballerina. (photo credit © Bolshoi Ballet) Dancing in Britain in 1956, "she astonished critics and fans alike with her performances as Juliet and Giselle." Her visit to the United States 2 years later, however, provoked a political spat with the man who was then The New York Times' dance critic:
Miss Ulanova performed most of the greatest roles in classical ballet, including the leads in 'Giselle,' 'Swan Lake,' 'Cinderella' and 'Sleeping Beauty.' Such was her power that when Mr. Martin criticized -- mildly -- her performance in 'Swan Lake' during the 1959 New York tour, Pravda responded the next day by accusing him and The Times of being 'bent on continuing the cold war.'
Ulanova, depicted below in clips from her performances of "Giselle" and "Romeo and Juliet," died in Moscow in 1998.
(Prior January 10 posts are here and here.)
