{"product_id":"dynamo-michael-somes-a-life-in-the-royal-ballet-hardcover","title":"Dynamo, Michael Somes A Life in The Royal Ballet - Hardcover","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eSarah Woodcock\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMichael Somes is the unsung hero of The Royal Ballet - the dynamo driving performances as dancer and partner to Margot Fonteyn and as overseer of performances in the company's greatest years. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrom humble beginnings, he challenged the prevailing prejudice against male dancers to become a star and a maker of stars, serving The Royal Ballet longer and contributing more to its development than anyone except its founder, Ninette de Valois. The Royal Ballet was his life. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSomes was born in 1917when ballet belonged to the exotic foreigner and even a British ballerina seemed impossible let alone an Englishman becoming a ballet dancer. In 1934, three years after the establishment of the Vic-Wells (now Royal) Ballet he was the first scholarship boy at their school. Only three years later ballets were being created for him, but four years of wartime service, culminating in serious injury, threatened to put an end to his career. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn 1946 he was integral to the company's move to Covent Garden, acclaimed tours in war-scarred Europe, a sensational New York debut in 1949 and triumphant coast-to-coast tours of North America. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHis masterly partnering skills underlay Fonteyn's transformation into an international star. They were \u003cem\u003ethe \u003c\/em\u003egreat ballet partnership, glamour incarnate, feted throughout the world: in Australia and South Africa people curtseyed to them like royalty: they were cultural ambassadors in Eastern Europe at the height of the Cold War and the first British dancers to appear in Japan. They danced before crowned heads and heads of state and the elite of Hollywood and Broadway. Under Somes' stern editorial eye, Ashton created masterpieces for them. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs The Royal Ballet's Assistant Director in the 1960s, during the company's golden years, Somes nurtured a wealth of talent at all levels, notably Antoinette Sibley (who became his second wife) and Anthony Dowell, and developed a corps de ballet of unsurpassed perfection. He described himself as a \"'sponge' \u0026amp; 'telephone wire'\" through which to pass the treasury of knowledge he learnt from the legendary names of 20\u003csup\u003eth\u003c\/sup\u003e century ballet, and saw passing on that knowledge as a duty and a privilege. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNow the legend of Somes the ruthless upholder of standards, of iron discipline and unpredictable rages was born, but seldom acknowledged is his endless patience, kindness, generosity and deep concern for every member of the company. Somes was The Royal Ballet's soul and moral centre. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWoven through his life were the legends of 20\u003csup\u003eth\u003c\/sup\u003e century ballet - Karsavina, Massine, Markova, Dolin, Balanchine, de Valois, Ashton, Fonteyn, MacMillan, Nureyev - musicians like Constant Lambert and Adrian Boult, artists like John Piper and Edward Burra. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDrawing on Somes' hitherto unseen letters and diaries augmented by interviews with contemporaries and those he mentored, \u003cem\u003eDynamo \u003c\/em\u003eis a first-hand account of both successes and failures, the day to day struggles, the grumbles and disagreements as British ballet grew from a few dancers in a fringe theatre in then unfashionable Islington to a company that challenged the supremacy of ballet in Russia and France. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 358\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.13 x 9.21 x 6.14 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e September 21, 2023\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52466111840563,"sku":"9781852731878","price":50.18,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0300\/5595\/6612\/files\/2hM6WvbPuq9781852731878.webp?v=1759308852","url":"https:\/\/www.vysn.com\/en-ca\/products\/dynamo-michael-somes-a-life-in-the-royal-ballet-hardcover","provider":"VYSN","version":"1.0","type":"link"}