Donald MacLeary and Elizabeth Anderton 1964

Donald Whyte MacLeary (born 22 August 1937) is a retired British ballet dancer, a former principal dancer and a ballet master with the

Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded in ...

, where he was a member of the company for 48 years. Born in Glasgow, Donald MacLeary studied with Sheila Ross from 1950–51 and at the

Sadler's Wells Ballet School The Royal Ballet School is a British school of classical ballet training founded in 1926 by the Anglo-Irish ballerina and choreographer Ninette de Valois. The school's aim is to train and educate outstanding classical ballet dancers, especiall ...

. He joined Sadler's Wells Theatre Ballet in 1954. In 1955, he was promoted to soloist. In 1959, he became the

's youngest principal dancer, when

Svetlana Beriosova Svetlana Nikolayevna Beriosova (russian: Светла́на Никола́евна Берёзова; 24 September 1932 – 10 November 1998), also spelled Beriozova or Beryozova, was a Lithuanian-British prima ballerina who danced with The Royal B ...

requested that he become her regular partner. According to

Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...

, MacLeary was "noted for his strong finesse and natural romanticism". MacLeary created roles in: *Works by

John Cranko John Cyril Cranko (15 August 1927 – 26 June 1973) was a South African ballet dancer and choreographer with the Royal Ballet and the Stuttgart Ballet. Life and career Early life Cranko was born in Rustenburg in the former province of Transv ...

**''The Angels'' (1957) **''Antigone'' (1959) **''Brandenburg 2 & 4'' (1966) *Works by

Kenneth MacMillan Sir Kenneth MacMillan (11 December 192929 October 1992) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer who was artistic director of the Royal Ballet in London between 1970 and 1977, and its principal choreographer from 1977 until his death. E ...

**'' Solitaire'' (1956) **''The Burrow'' (1958) **''Baiser de la fée'' (1960) **''Diversions'' (1961) **''Symphony'' (1963) **''Images of Love'' (1964) **''Checkpoint'' (1970) **''The Poltroon'' (1972) **''

Elite Syncopations "Elite Syncopations" is a 1902 ragtime piano composition by American composer Scott Joplin, originally published in 1903 by John Stark & Son.Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the

2004 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2004 were appointments by some of the Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrations ...

for services to dance.United Kingdom:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:MacLeary, Donald 1937 births Principal dancers of The Royal Ballet British male ballet dancers Officers of the Order of the British Empire Living people Ballet masters People educated at the Royal Ballet School 20th-century British ballet dancers