Leyla Mahad qizi Vakilova ( az, Leyla Vəkilova) (27 January 1927,

Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...

– 21 February 1999,

) was a Soviet and

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...

ballerina A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on yea ...

and ballet instructor.

Career

Leyla Vakilova was born in

Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic Azerbaijan ( az, Азәрбајҹан, Azərbaycan, italics=no), officially the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic (Azerbaijan SSR; az, Азәрбајҹан Совет Сосиалист Республикасы, Azərbaycan Sovet Sosialist R ...

, Soviet Union. She took ballet lessons at the Baku School of Choreography from prominent Azerbaijani ballerina

Gamar Almaszadeh Gamar Hajiaga qizi Almaszadeh ( az, Qəmər Hacıağa qızı Almaszadə) (10 March 1915, Baku – 7 April 2006, Baku) was a Soviet and Azerbaijani ballerina and ballet instructor. She's considered the first ballerina of the Muslim world. Early li ...

. In 1945, she left for

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

to gain experience in the field of ballet at the

Moscow State Academy of Choreography The Moscow State Academy of Choreography (russian: Московская государственная академия хореографии), commonly known as The Bolshoi Ballet Academy, is one of the oldest and most prestigious schools of ball ...

. After returning to Baku in 1946, she made her first ballet performance as Tao Khoa in ''

The Red Poppy ''The Red Poppy'' (russian: Красный мак, Krasniy mak) or sometimes ''The Red Flower'' (russian: Красный цветок, Krasniy tsvetok) is a ballet in three acts and eight tableaux with an apotheosis, with a score written by Rein ...

'' by

Reinhold Glière Reinhold Moritzevich Glière (born Reinhold Ernest Glier, which was later converted for standardization purposes; russian: Рейнгольд Морицевич Глиэр; 23 June 1956), was a Russian Imperial and Soviet composer of German and P ...

at the

Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre The Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater (Azeri: ''Axundov adına Azərbaycan Dövlət Akademik Opera və Balet Teatrı''), formerly known as the Mailov Theatre

where she worked for the next 30 years. Her early performances in Azerbaijani ballets by

Afrasiyab Badalbeyli Afrasiyab Badal bey oghlu Badalbeyli ( az, Əfrasiyab Bədəl bəy oğlu Bədəlbəyli) (19 April 1907, in Baku – 6 January 1976, in Baku) was a Soviet Azerbaijani composer, with noble Iranian origins (he was the descendant of Bahman Mirza and ...

Soltan Hajibeyov Soltan Ismayil oghlu Hajibeyov ( az, Soltan İsmayıl oğlu Hacıbəyov, russian: Солтан Исмаил оглы Гаджибеков, also transliterated as Sultan Gadzhibekov; 5 May 1919 – 19 September 1974), was a Soviet Azerbaijani comp ...

Gara Garayev Gara Abulfaz oghlu Garayev ( az, Qara Əbülfəz oğlu Qarayev, russian: Кара́ Абульфа́зович Кара́ев (Kara Abulfazovich Karayev), February 5, 1918 – May 13, 1982), also spelled as Qara Qarayev or Kara Karayev, was a pr ...

Fikrat Amirov Fikret Mashadi Jamil oghlu Amirov ( az, Fikrət Məşədi Cəmil oğlu Əmirov; November 22, 1922, Ganja – February 20, 1984, Baku) was a prominent Soviet and Azerbaijani composer. Biography Fikret Amirov grew up in an atmosphere of Azer ...

and

Arif Malikov Arif Malikov (also Melikov; Baku, 13 September 1933 – Baku, 9 May 2019) was an Azerbaijani composer. He graduated from the Baku Conservatory as a music composer in 1958. He shot to fame in 1961 when his first major composition " Legend of Lov ...

brought her great fame, which was recognized by the awarding of the

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration b ...

to her. In 1967, Vakilova was granted the title of the

People's Artist of the USSR People's Artist of the USSR ( rus, Народный артист СССР, Narodny artist SSSR), also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union. Nomenclature and significan ...

. She also became head of the

Azerbaijan State Folk Song and Dance Ensemble Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country, transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Wester ...

founded by her teacher Gamar Almaszadeh. From 1953, she taught ballet at the Baku School of Choreography. In 1972, at the age of 45, Leyla Vakilova retired from ballet, even though she continued her teaching career at the School of Choreography until her death in 1999.Leader of the National Ballet
by Tarana Maharramova. ''Kaspi''. February 2007. Retrieved 6 April 2007

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vakilova, Leyla Azerbaijani ballerinas Azerbaijani ballet masters Ballet teachers Azerbaijani choreographers Azerbaijani educators 1927 births 1999 deaths Dancers from Baku People's Artists of the USSR People's Artists of the Azerbaijan SSR Soviet Azerbaijani people

Career

See also

References