Natalia Romanovna Makarova (Russian:Ната́лия Рома́новна Мака́рова, born 21 November 1940) is a Russianprima ballerina andchoreographer.The History of Dance, published in 1981, notes that "her performances set standards of artistry and aristocracy of dance which mark her as the finest ballerina of her generation in the West."[1]
When she first arrived in the West, Makarova was eager to expand her choreography by dancing ballets by modern choreographers. At the same time, she remained most identified with classical roles such as Odette/Odile inSwan Lake andGiselle. In December 1975, she and her dance partnerMikhail Baryshnikov featured prominently in an episode of theBBC television seriesArena. She was featured in the 1976 live American Ballet Theatre production ofSwan Lake,simulcast fromLincoln Center on bothPBS andNPR.[3] When ABT artistic directorLucia Chase stepped down, both Makarova and Baryshnikov applied. After the company went with Baryshnikov, she left for the Royal Ballet of London.[3]
Makarova continued to excel in many different roles,[4] most notably, her title role inGiselle. In 1989, she returned to her home theatre of theKirov Ballet and was reunited with her family and with former colleagues and teachers. Her emotional homecoming was documented in the filmMakarova Returns, which she wrote as well as presented. After her performance at the Kirov, she retired from dancing, donating her shoes and costumes to the Kirov Museum. Today Makarova stages ballets such asSwan Lake,La Bayadère andSleeping Beauty for companies across the world. She retired from dancing due to accumulating injuries, especially to her knees.
Makarova has been married three times. Once to another ballet dancer and once to directorLeonid Kvinikhidze. In 1976, Makarova married industrialist Edward Karkar, and together they had a son, Andrei.[6] Karkar died 22 December 2013, at the age of 81.[7]Janet Sassoon said about Makarova,
When I began teaching in San Francisco, through Madam Bali, I got to work with all these great Russian first dancers when they were there. So I got Natalia (Natasha) Makarova, a Prima Ballerina Assoluta. There was only one Prima Ballerina Assoluta up until the time she danced. And here I had her in my hands for five months after the birth of her child![8]
1985 –London Evening Standard Award – for the Best Performance of 1985 in the balletOnegin. Presented on stage by Princess Diana after Makarova's performance ofOnegin in 1986, London
1986 – Emmy Award nomination forBallerina, a four-part documentary TV series, which was conceived, written and narrated by Makarova,BBC London/WNET
1991/92 – American Library Association Award – for Makarova's recordings of the storiesSnow Maiden,The Frog Princess & Firebird – Delos Records
Royal Ballet: -Manon; Song of the Earth;A Month in the Country; Concerto; Cinderella; Voluntaries;Dances at a Gathering; Serenade; Elite Syncopations; Concerto; Checkmate;Les Biches; Kenneth MacMillan'sRomeo and Juliet; Swan Lake, Giselle, The Sleeping Beauty, Les Sylphides, Van Manen'sAdagio Hammerklavier; MacMillan'sPas de Deux and Ashton'sDream Pas de Deux.
As Guest Artist with ballet companies throughout the world her repertoire included: the classical repertoire (Giselle, Swan Lake, Les Sylphides, La Sylphide) as well asOnegin (Cranko);Notre Dame de Paris,Carmen, Proust,Le Jeune Homme et la Mort (Petit);Romeo and Juliet (Cranko),Swan Lake (Cranko), Neumeier'sIllusions - LikeSwan Lake 2nd Act,Bach Sonata (Bejart);Nutcracker (Neumeier);Romeo & Juliet (full-length version Tchernishov);Le Rossignol (Ashton);Rosalinda (Hynd);Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux (Balanchine);Apparitions (Ashton);Afternoon of a Faun (Robbins);Meditation (Haigen)The Real McCoy (Feld)The Lesson (Flindt),The Toreador (Bourneville);Dying Swan;Corsaire Pas de Deux &Don Quixote Pas de Deux.
Original productions staged and directed by Makarova
