Sulamith Mikhailovna Messerer, OBE (russian: Сулами́фь Миха́йловна Мессере́р, 27 August 1908, Moscow3 June 2004, London) was a Russian

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

choreographer Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who cr ...

who laid the foundations for the

classical ballet Classical ballet is any of the traditional, formal styles of ballet that exclusively employ classical ballet technique. It is known for its aesthetics and rigorous technique (such as pointe work, turnout of the legs, and high extensions), its ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

Biography

Sulamith Messerer was born into the

Lithuanian Jewish Lithuanian Jews or Litvaks () are Jews with roots in the territory of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania (covering present-day Lithuania, Belarus, Latvia, the northeastern Suwałki and Białystok regions of Poland, as well as adjacent areas o ...

family of dentist Mikhail Messerer and his wife Sima Shabad,''I'm Maya Plisetskaya''. 490 p. Moscow: AST Moscow, 2008.Sulamif Messerer: "I want to live!"
and was one of nine children. Every child was given a biblical name: Pnina, Azariah, Mattany, Rachel, Asaf (or Assaf), Elisheva, Sulamith (or Shulamith), Emanuel, Abinadab and Erella. Sulamith Messerer, her brother Azari Azarin (an actor), sister

Rachel Messerer Rachel Mikhailovna Messerer-Plisetskaya (russian: Рахиль Михайловна Мессерер-Плисецкая; 4 March 1902 – 20 March 1993), also known by her stage name Ra Messerer, was a Russian silent film and theatre actress ...

and brother

Asaf Messerer Asaf Mikhailovich Messerer (Russian: Асаф Михайлович Мессерер, November 19, 1903 - March 7, 1992) was a highly influential Soviet ballet dancer and ballet teacher. He was born in Vilnius, Lithuania. From 1919 until 1921 he tra ...

(ballet dancer,

) became famous and started a dynasty of outstanding ballet dancers and ballet masters. Sulamith studied from the age of 8 in the Moscow Ballet School under

Vasily Tikhomirov Vasiliy Dmitriyevich Tikhomirov (1876–1956) was a dancer (from 1895) and a choreographer (from 1913) with the Bolshoi Ballet of Moscow, Russia. His most distinguished production was ''The Red Poppy'' (1927), with his wife Yekaterina Geltzer i ...

and Elisabeth Gerdt and danced in the

Bolshoi Theatre The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, literally "Big Theater", p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈatər) is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds ballet and ope ...

from 1926 until 1950. In 1929, she is promoted to

prima 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 ...

of the Bolshoï ballet and kept this position for 25 years. In 1933, she and her brother

became the first Soviet dancers to tour

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

. She also practised swimming all her life and held the Soviet swimming record for the 100-metres

crawl Crawl, The Crawl, or crawling may refer to: Biology * Crawling (human), any of several types of human quadrupedal gait * Limbless locomotion, the movement of limbless animals over the ground * Undulatory locomotion, a type of motion characterize ...

between 1927 and 1930. After her sister Rachel Messerer-Plisetskaya was arrested in the

Great Purge The Great Purge or the Great Terror (russian: Большой террор), also known as the Year of '37 (russian: 37-й год, translit=Tridtsat sedmoi god, label=none) and the Yezhovshchina ('period of Nikolay Yezhov, Yezhov'), was General ...

, Sulamith legally adopted Rachel's daughter

Maya Plisetskaya Maya Mikhailovna Plisetskaya (russian: link=no, Майя Михайловна Плисецкая; 20 November 1925 – 2 May 2015) was a Soviet and Russian ballet dancer, choreographer, ballet director, and actress. In post-Soviet times, she he ...

, whom she coached into one of the greatest

s ever. From 1950 until 1980, she was also active as a ballet mistress and teacher in the Bolshoi. Her brother took care of their nephew and Maya's younger brother

Alexander Plisetski Alexander Mikhailovich Plisetski (russian: Александр Михайлович Плисецкий) (20 October 1931 — 29 October 1985) was a Russian ballet master and choreographer and a younger brother of the famous Russian ballerina Maya ...

. Since 1961, she spent much time in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, where she mastered

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

and was instrumental in establishing the

Tokyo Ballet The Tokyo Ballet is a classical ballet company, based in Tokyo, Japan, founded in 1964. Since its foundation, The Tokyo Ballet has developed a wide range of repertoire from classical full-length ballets to masterpieces of contemporary choreograph ...

. She was also the aunt of theater artist Boris Messerer through her brother Asaf. In 1978 and 1979, she taught numerous students at Ankara State Conservatory (now part of Hacettepe University) in Turkey. Her influence shaped the lives of many Turkish dancers. In 1980, at the age of 72, she defected to

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

, where she continued to work as a much sought-after coach. Her many honours included the

Stalin Prize Stalin Prize may refer to: * The State Stalin Prize in science and engineering and in arts, awarded 1941 to 1954, later known as the USSR State Prize The USSR State Prize (russian: links=no, Государственная премия СССР, ...

(1946), the

People's Artist of the RSFSR People's Artist of the RSFSR (russian: Народный артист РСФСР, ''Narodnyj artist RSFSR'') was an honorary title granted to Soviet Union artists, including theatre and film directors, choreographers, music performers, and orchest ...

(1962), the

Order of the Sacred Treasures The is a Japanese order, established on 4 January 1888 by Emperor Meiji as the Order of Meiji. Originally awarded in eight classes (from 8th to 1st, in ascending order of importance), since 2003 it has been awarded in six classes, the lowest t ...

(1996). She is the first Russian to be awarded the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(2000).

References

External links

2004 Britannica Article
of her by ballet dancer

Gavin Roebuck Gavin is a male given name originating from Scotland. It is a variation on the medieval name Gawain, meaning "God send" or "white hawk" (or falcon). Sir Gawain was a knight of King Arthur's Round Table. ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'' is an ep ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Messerer, Sulamith 1908 births 2004 deaths Dancers from Moscow People from Moskovsky Uyezd Plisetski–Messerer family Russian Jews Soviet ballerinas Ballet choreographers Soviet choreographers Ballet teachers Soviet female freestyle swimmers Soviet expatriates in Japan Soviet defectors to the United Kingdom Jewish dancers Bolshoi Ballet principal dancers Prima ballerinas Stalin Prize winners Officers of the Order of the British Empire

Biography

See also

References

External links