Great Ballet Partnerships

In the world of ballet, pairing up two dancers is almost like creating a marriage. There must be chemistry, communication and trust.  The male ballet dancer must be confident and strong in his  lifts; the ballerina must also be strong and at the same time allow him to support her.

Pas de deux require enormous communication that is perfected over time, just like a good marriage.  This makes for great ballet partnerships that can last up to decades and define dancers’ careers.

Sid Smith of The Chicago Tribune writes of leading ballet couples who make career-long bonds.

Great Ballet Partnerships

The phenomenon of the ballet partnership is close to unique, unlike just about anything else in the arts.

Actors play romantic duos for one movie or so, or for a theatrical run, and then go their separate ways. So do opera singers.

But ballet dancers unite for season after season, sometimes for years, and their teamwork involves a physical intimacy and mutual reliance shared only by the likes of ballroom superstars, figure skaters and stars of long-running TV romances. Ballet couples are two people who must make for one singular sensation.

“Sometimes, you find this great chemistry,” said Kevin McKenzie, artistic director of American Ballet Theatre. “Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev had it. Carla Fracci and Erik Bruhn. Alessandra Ferri and Julio Bocca. Those extreme examples make it seem obvious.

Marcelo Gomes of ABT (American Ballet Theatre) candidly describes the complexity of partnering, especially in a ballet like Giselle.

“Partnering in ‘Giselle’ is actually quite hard and extremely intricate,” Gomes said. “In Act 2, she’s a ghost; she has to be lighter than air. You can throw your partner forcefully in ‘Don Quixote,’ but not in ‘Giselle.’ Everything has to be delicate. Sometimes I literally listen to Julie’s breathing to get the signal to move to the next position. There are these difficult carries across the width of the stage, and then you put her down on point, (which is) hard on the arms, but if you don’t do it just right, it will look labored.”

Kevin McKenzie, artistic director of the American Ballet Theatre adds:

…it’s about the trust between the two dancers, both knowing what notes they’re going to favor, because they’re singing the same song.”

Seamless collaboration on stage trumps technical discipline. “It’s almost like … you’re flying,” Gomes said. “It’s truly beautiful to experience.”

Follow Mr. Sid Smith’s article.

When exceptional dancers come together, great ballet partnerships are created. To have the opportunity to watch a leading couple perform is an unforgettable experience.

I’ll be posting videos of some of great leading couples in the history of ballet. So stay on the look out! Or better yet, subscribe to our weekly ballet updates by signing up below and you won’t miss a single post!

Update: Here’s a beautiful video featuring one of the greatest ballet couples of the 20th century.