Massine, Léonide << mah SEEN, lay aw NEED >> (1896-1979), was a great Russian dancer and choreographer (dance creator). Massine invented a dance form called symphonic ballet, in which abstract (storyless) ballets were choreographed to well-known symphonies. His Les Presages (1933) to Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 was the first of these ballets. He also choreographed and danced in many other kinds of ballets, such as The Three-Cornered Hat (1919), Le Beau Danube (1933), and Gaite Parisienne (1938). As a dancer, he had a strong personality, especially in comic or character roles.
Massine was born on Aug. 8, 1896, in Moscow. He joined Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes as a dancer in 1913. By 1917 he had created several ballets, including the first cubist ballet, Parade. Massine was director, dancer, and choreographer of the Ballets Russes from 1932 to 1938 and of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo from 1938 to 1941. He also appeared in films, including The Red Shoes (1948) and Tales of Hoffmann (1951). Massine died on March 15, 1979.
