Roland Petit facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Roland Petit
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Petit in 2009
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| Born | 13 January 1924 Villemomble, France
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| Died | 10 July 2011 (aged 87) Geneva, Switzerland
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| Alma mater | Paris Opéra Ballet |
| Occupation | Dancer and choreographer |
| Years active | 1945–2011 |
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| Awards | Prix Benois de la Danse |
Roland Petit (born January 13, 1924 – died July 10, 2011) was a famous French dancer and choreographer. A choreographer is someone who creates dance routines. He also directed ballet companies. Roland Petit trained at the famous Paris Opéra Ballet school. He became well known for making new and exciting ballets.
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Roland Petit: A Master of Dance
Roland Petit was born in Villemomble, a town near Paris, France. His mother, Rose Repetto, was a shoe designer. Roland started his dance training at the Paris Opéra Ballet school. He learned from great teachers like Gustave Ricaux and Serge Lifar. By 1940, he was dancing with the main group of dancers, called the corps de ballet.
Creating His Own Dance Companies
Roland Petit loved to create new dances. In 1945, he started his first dance company, the Ballets des Champs-Élysées. A few years later, in 1948, he founded another company called the Ballets de Paris. This company performed at the Théâtre Marigny. His future wife, Zizi Jeanmaire, was a star dancer in this company.
Petit worked with many talented people. He collaborated with famous artists and designers. For example, he worked with fashion designer Yves Saint-Laurent. He also helped create dances for several French and American movies.
Bringing Ballets to Life
In 1965, Roland Petit returned to the Paris Opéra. He created a new version of the ballet Notre Dame de Paris. The music for this ballet was by Maurice Jarre. Petit continued to direct ballets for big theaters around the world. His works were seen in France, Italy, Germany, Great Britain, Canada, and Cuba.
In 1972, he started the Ballet National de Marseille. One of his first pieces for this company was the "Pink Floyd Ballet." He led the Ballet National de Marseille for 26 years. He often worked with painter Jean Carzou to design the sets for his ballets. He also worked with other artists like Max Ernst.
His Unique Dance Style
Roland Petit created more than 50 ballets. He choreographed for many famous dancers from different countries. He was known for not using too many fancy technical tricks. Instead, he kept changing his style and dance language. He became a master at creating pas de deux, which are dances for two people. He was also great at telling stories through ballet. But he could also create abstract ballets that didn't tell a specific story.
He worked with artists who were part of a movement called nouveaux réalistes. These artists included Martial Raysse, Niki de Saint Phalle, and Jean Tinguely.
Famous Ballets and Films
One of his most famous works is Le jeune homme et la mort (meaning "The Young Man and Death"). He created this ballet in 1946 with writer Jean Cocteau. The dance moves and costumes in this ballet were very modern for their time.
Another well-known ballet was Carmen from 1949. In this ballet, he used a special dance move called en dedans in a new way. His ballet Turangalîla was also very unique and not based on a story.
Roland Petit also contributed to several films:
- Symphonie en blanc (1942) where he appeared as a dancer.
- He choreographed for the 1948 film Alice in Wonderland.
- He worked on The Glass Slipper (1954).
- He helped with Anything Goes (1956).
- He was a choreographer, writer, and dancer in Black Tights (1960).
Awards and Recognition
In 1994, Roland Petit received the Prix Benois de la Danse. This is a very important award for choreographers.
Family Life
In 1954, Roland Petit married the dancer Zizi Jeanmaire. She danced in many of his ballets. In 1993, he wrote a book about his life called J'ai dansé sur les flots (which means "I Danced on the Waves"). Roland and Zizi had one daughter, Valentine Petit, who also became a dancer and actress.
Roland Petit passed away in Geneva, Switzerland, in 2011. He was 87 years old.
List of Ballets
Roland Petit created 176 ballets during his career. Here are some of them:
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See also
In Spanish: Roland Petit para niños
