Tanaquil Le Clercq facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Tanaquil Le Clercq
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Le Clercq as Dewdrop of the Candy Flowers in The Nutcracker, 1954
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| Born | October 2, 1929 Paris, France
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| Died | December 31, 2000 (aged 71) Manhattan, New York, U.S.
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| Occupation | Ballet dancer |
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Tanaquil Le Clercq (pronounced lek-LAIR; born October 2, 1929, died December 31, 2000) was an amazing American ballet dancer. She was born in Paris, France. By the time she was 19, she became a main dancer with the New York City Ballet. Sadly, her dancing career stopped suddenly in 1956. This happened when she got polio during a dance tour in Copenhagen. She learned to use her arms and upper body again. However, she could not move her legs for the rest of her life.
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Early Life and Dance Training
Tanaquil Le Clercq was the daughter of Jacques Le Clercq. He was a professor who taught French at Queens College. Her mother was Edith Whittemore. Tanaquil started learning ballet with Mikhail Mordkin. In 1941, she tried out for the School of American Ballet. She was so good that she won a special scholarship to study there.
A Special Dancer and Muse
When Tanaquil was 15, a famous dance creator named George Balanchine asked her to dance with him. They performed in a show to help people with polio. In this dance, Balanchine played a character called Polio. Tanaquil played his victim, who became unable to move and fell to the floor. Then, children in the dance would throw coins at her character. This made her get up and dance again. This was a strange hint of what would happen later in her life.
Many people thought Tanaquil was Balanchine's first true ballerina. She learned his dance style from a young age. She was one of his most important inspirations, like other dancers such as Maria Tallchief. During her time with the New York City Ballet, Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, and Merce Cunningham all created new dances just for her.
Life After Polio
After Tanaquil got polio, she found a new way to share her love of dance. She became a dance teacher. One of her students remembered that Tanaquil "used her hands and arms as legs and feet." This shows how creative and strong she was. She taught at the Dance Theater of Harlem from 1974 to 1982.
Tanaquil Le Clercq's life and career are shown in a 2013 movie. It is a documentary called Afternoon of a Faun: Tanaquil Le Clercq. A writer named Varley O'Connor also wrote a book about Tanaquil and George Balanchine. It is called The Master's Muse.
Personal Life
Tanaquil Le Clercq was married to George Balanchine. He was a very important person in American ballet. They were married from 1952 to 1969.
Tanaquil Le Clercq passed away from pneumonia in New York Hospital. She was 71 years old.
See also
In Spanish: Tanaquil Le Clercq para niños
