Nini Theilade

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Nini Theilade
Born
Nini Arlette Theilade

(1915-06-15)15 June 1915
Purwokerto, Dutch East Indies
Died13 February 2018(2018-02-13) (aged 102)
Hesselager, Svendborg Municipality, Denmark
Occupations
  • Ballet dancer
  • choreographer
  • teacher
Years active1925–2013

Nini Arlette Theilade (15 June 1915 – 13 February 2018[1]) was a Danish ballet dancer, choreographer and teacher.

Early life

Theilade was born in Purwokerto, Dutch East Indies. Her mother, Joanna Catarina, was of Polish, German, and French extraction, while her father, Hans Theilade, was an engineer. In 1926, on the family's return to Denmark, she attended Asta Mollerup's ballet school in Copenhagen.[citation needed]

After she was refused entry to the Royal Ballet's school when she was 12, her mother took her to Paris, hoping the best teachers of the time would ensure her development. Although Nini soon appeared in

Lubov Egorova who trained the stars of the Ballets Russes.[2]

Career

Dancer

In 1929, aged 14, Theilade appeared in

Royal Theatre, Copenhagen
before touring the United States.

From 1931, under Max Reinhardt, she appeared in Berlin, Vienna, Salzburg and Florence. She also starred both as a dancer and actress in Reinhardt's Hollywood film A Midsummer Night's Dream in 1935.[2][3]

From 1938-40, she played many leading roles in the

Debussy's Clouds.[2][4]

Choreographer and instructor

During the war years, she went to Brazil where she met her first husband, Piet Loopuyt, a Dutchman, with whom she had two children.[3] They travelled widely together before arriving in Rio de Janeiro where Theilade became an instructor.[2][5]

In the 1950s, she was invited back to Copenhagen as a choreographer. Among her productions were Metaphor with music by Niels Viggo Bentzon with Mona Vangsaa in the highly erotic leading role, and Concerto with music by Robert Schumann. In 1965, she settled in Denmark, producing Græsstrået, one of the earliest ballets for television, by composer Else Marie Pade and author El Forman. It was followed by Psyche and Kalkbillede.[2]

From 1969 to 1978, she founded a ballet academy in

Odense Theatre's school which was to last 30 years. After running into financial difficulties at Thurø, she and her second husband, Arne Buchter-Larsen, accepted an invitation to set up a three-year course of study in Lyon, the Académie de Ballet Nini Theilade. Her school is still active today, with classes of ballet, modern jazz, contemporary, baroque, de caractère, historical (Renaissance, 19th century), and Irish dance.[6] She left Lyon in 1990 at the age of 75 to return to Denmark where she continued to be active in drama and dance productions.[2] In particular, she was to work for a further 20 years as dance instructor at Oure Folk School on the island of Funen.[3] She died on 13 February 2018 at the age of 102.[7][8]

References

  1. ^ "Dansen var det hele værd". Berlingske.dk. 13 February 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Nini Theilade profile". Dansk kvindebiografisk leksikon (in Danish). Retrieved 28 February 2014.
  3. ^ a b c Dorte Washuus (14 June 2010). "Nini Theilade - et liv i bevægelse". Kristeligt Dagblad (in Danish). Retrieved 28 February 2014.
  4. ISBN 978-0-7864-3051-2
    .
  5. ^ "Nini Theilade". Dansk Biografisk Leksikon (in Danish). Retrieved 28 February 2014.
  6. ^ "Académie de Ballet Nini Theilade".
  7. ^ "Danmarks ældste balletdanser er død - TV 2". nyheder.tv2.dk. 13 February 2018.
  8. ^ "Nini Theilade, Ballet Dancer in 1935's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream,' Dies at 102". MSN. Archived from the original on 2018-02-14. Retrieved 2018-02-14.
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