Nikolai Petrovich Yavorsky ( Russian: Никола́й Петро́вич Яво́рский; 23 February 1891,

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...

- 9 October 1947, Santiago de Cuba) was a Cuban choreographer and

ballet teacher Dance education is a practice whereby students are taught a broad understanding of dance as an art form or trained professionally in specific dance genres. Dance education also encompasses a research area in which scholars conduct original resear ...

of Russian origin.

Biography

Nikolai Yavorsky was born in

, where in 1909 he started studying classical dance. During World War I he was an artillery officer, during Russian Civil War he fought in the

Armed Forces of South Russia The Armed Forces of South Russia (AFSR or SRAF) () were the unified military forces of the White movement in southern Russia between 1919 and 1920. On 8 January 1919, the Armed Forces of South Russia were formed, incorporating the Volunteer Army ...

. Emigre since 1920, he lived in Turkey, Greece and Yugoslavia. In 1922 Yavorsky was invited to the newly created ballet company of the National Theatre in Belgrade, where he worked under the guidance of Elena Polyakova. In 1928 he moved to Paris where he joined the ballet troupe of the

Théâtre des Champs-Élysées The Théâtre des Champs-Élysées () is an entertainment venue standing at 15 avenue Montaigne in Paris. It is situated near Avenue des Champs-Élysées, from which it takes its name. Its eponymous main hall may seat up to 1,905 people, while th ...

. In 1929 Yavorsky joined the ballet company of the Opéra Privée created by Maria Kuznetsova-Benois that the same year left Paris for a road tour to Latin America. After the Opéra Privée dissolution in 1930 Yavorsky had to stay in Cuba for the lack of money to return to Europe. In June 1931 Nikolai Yavorsky was invited to direct the dance school established by the Pro-Arte Musical society in Havana. He taught classical dance there till 1939, being the first ballet teacher of the further outstanding Cuban dancers and choreographers Alberto Alonso and

Alicia Alonso Alicia Alonso (born Alicia Ernestina de la Caridad del Cobre Martínez del Hoyo; 21 December 1920 – 17 October 2019) was a Cuban prima ballerina assoluta and choreographer whose company became the Ballet Nacional de Cuba in 1955. She is best ...

. In 1936, when Sol Hurok brought the

Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo The Original Ballet Russe (originally named Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo) was a ballet company established in 1931 by René Blum and Colonel Wassily de Basil as a successor to the Ballets Russes, founded in 1909 by Sergei Diaghilev. The company ...

to Havana, Yavorsky helped Alberto Alonso, one of his best pupils, to join that prestigious ballet company. In 1939 - 1941 Yavorsky managed his own ballet studio in Vedado district of Havana. In early 1941 he was invited by the Pro-Arte Musical society of Santiago de Cuba to direct its new dance school which was going to be opened in that city. Nikolai Yavorsky spent his last years in

Oriente province Oriente (, "East") was the easternmost province of Cuba until 1976. The term "Oriente" is still used to refer to the eastern part of the country, which currently is divided into five different provinces. Fidel and Raúl Castro were born in a sm ...

of Cuba, where he headed a dance school of the Pro-Arte Musical society's branch in

. Nikolai Yavorsky died in Santiago de Cuba. He was buried at the

Santa Ifigenia Cemetery Santa Ifigenia Cemetery (Spanish: Cementerio Santa Ifigenia) is a cemetery in Santiago de Cuba and resting place of a few notable Cubans. The cemetery opened in 1868 to replace smaller Cemetery of Santa Ana. The signature resting place is th ...

References

* Rossiysky M. A. Russian emigre community in Cuba: chapters of history. Moscow: Veche Publishers, 2002 - (Russian) * Nechayev S. Y. Russians in Latin America. Moscow: Veche Publishers, 2010 - (Russian) * Triguero Tamayo E.R. Nikolai Yavorsky: un maestro ruso en la isla del ballet. Ediciones Santiago, Santiago de Cuba, 2010 (Spanish)

External links

Nicolai Yavorski: sus dos amores en Cuba

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yavorsky, Nikolai 1891 births 1947 deaths Dancers from Odesa Cuban male ballet dancers Cuban choreographers Russian military personnel of World War I People of the Russian Civil War White Russian emigrants to Cuba Emigrants from the Russian Empire to Cuba