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121:. In two years she had graduated from the school and joined the Royal Ballet company in 1957. She climbed rapidly through the ranks to become a principal ballerina and appeared in a wide array of roles, both classical and contemporary, until her retirement in 1975. This eighteen-year career coincided with an exciting period for the Royal Ballet. Apart from the stream of new works from
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development was supervised by one South Africa's most formidable dance teachers, Marjory
Sturman. Deanne regularly took part in eisteddfods and school productions of the classics and was encouraged to take an RAD examinations. Hence she came to the notice of Claude Newman, as mentioned above, and made her way to London and the Royal Ballet School.
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John Piper, costumes by
Charles Knode and choreography by Frederick Ashton, was premiered at the Maltings in Snape in 1973 and later performed at Covent Garden, at the Fenice Theatre in Venice and at the Theatre de la Monnaie in Brussels. At Covent Garden she also appeared in John Schlesinger's production of
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In the later years of her career at Covent Garden
Bergsma made appearances in non-singing roles in opera productions. Benjamin Britten asked her to create the role of the Polish Mother in what was to be his last opera Death in Venice. This production, directed by Colin Graham, with set designs by
145:
Born in
Harrismith in 1941 in the Orange Free State. The daughter of a doctor and one of four children. In 1946 the family moved to Pretoria. By a happy chance the new family home had an adjoining studio which was used for dancing classes. Thus at an early age Deanne was introduced to ballet. Her
937:
After retiring in 1975 at
Anthony Dowell's invitation she returned to Covent Garden as a guest artist in revivals of Ondine, The Firebird and as the Queen Mother in Dowell's production of Swan Lake. She also coached younger dancers in several of her former roles. She served for eight years as a
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member of the Royal Ballet's Board of
Governors, which has oversight of the Royal Ballet companies in London and Birmingham and of both the junior and senior Royal Ballet schools. Until 2020 she served as a leading external examiner for the Royal Ballet schools.
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is usually performed to an orchestrated version of
Mendelssohns' Songs Without Words. But at a gala performance in the Maltings in 1970
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A tall and elegant dancer Deanne
Bergsma's earliest opportunities to shine were in the classical repertoire, notably as Odette/Odile in
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109:. She was born in 1941 and showed early promise as a dancer, She first came to London in 1957 to take up a place in the
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She retired from the company in 1974, although she returned in 1988 to take the role of Berta in a revival of Ashton's
188:(famously an adherent of tall ballerinas). She had the benefit of personal coaching from Balanchine himself and from
204:. Two years later Rudolf Nureyev and Bergsma danced together in filmed excerpts of this ballet. (See Films below).
196:. A totally new dimension was added to Bergsma's repertory and reputation in 1970, when the American choreographer
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In 1968 she married Keith Grant, then
General Manager of both the Royal Opera Company and the Benjamin Britten's
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the company's resident director-choreographers, it was the heyday of the partnership of
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Robert Gard, John
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1008:"Royal Academy of Dance presents Genée International Ballet Competition 2010"
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in the non-singing role of Stella. In Anthony Besch's production of Mozart's
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chose her and Desmond Kelly to create the leading roles in his new ballet
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137:. The company was touring worldwide and was rarely out of the headlines.
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competition in 2011, and as a judge in the semi-finals of the
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for the role of the Hostess in one of her best-known ballets,
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she made a mime appearance as Titus's inamorata Berenice.
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Opera by Benjamin Britten, conducted by Steuart Bedford
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Scenes from various ballets including Glen Tetley's
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992:"The Young British Dancer of the Year Award 2011"
839:accompanied Deanne Bergsma on stage at the piano.
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216:Bergsma served on the judging panel for the
180:. She also made her mark in many ballets of
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97:(born 16 April 1941) is a South African
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545:Petipa, Marius & Cecchetti, Enrico
222:Genée International Ballet Competition
166:and as Myrtha, Queen of the Wilis, in
1092:Principal dancers of The Royal Ballet
578:Petipa, Marius & Nureyev, Rudolf
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1053:Audio interview with Deanne Bergsma
950:. They have a son and a daughter.
176:, Keith Rosson, Desmond Kelly and
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231:Deanne Bergsma as The Hostess in
172:. She was partnered variously by
901:Deanne Bergsma, Rudolph Nureyev
218:Young British Dancer of the Year
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101:, who made her career in the
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502:Petipa, Marius (and others)
16:South African ballet dancer
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661:Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Ilyich
499:Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Ilyich
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338:& Ashton, Frederick
331:Tchaikovsky, Pyotr Ilych
160:, as the Lilac Fairy in
52:Harrismith, South Africa
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879:Director/Choreographer
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1048:British Film Institute
1013:13 August 2016 at the
799:Bach, Johann Sebastian
567:Raymonda (Title Role)
558:Stockhausen, Karlheinz
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119:Royal Academy of Dance
854:The Tales of Hoffmann
717:Nijinska, Bronislava
522:Petipa, Marius &
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37:Bergsma as Odette in
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700:Nijinska, Bronislava
575:Glazunov, Alexander
284:Sylvia (Title Role)
262:Firebire / Tsarevna
1021:(19 November 2010).
998:(10 February 2011).
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858:La Clemenza di Tito
772:MacMillan, Kenneth
679:Balanchine, George
664:Balanchine, George
648:Balanchine, George
632:Balanchine, George
616:Balanchine, George
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111:Royal Ballet School
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486:Ashton, Frederick
482:Mendelssohn, Felix
473:Girl with the Fan
468:Ashton, Frederick
453:Ashton, Frederick
436:Ashton, Frederick
416:Ashton, Frederick
401:The Polish Mother
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368:Daphnis and Chloe
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833:Lord of Burleigh
777:Queen of Hearts
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322:The Lilac Fairy
304:Lady Mary Lygon
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657:Ballet Imperial
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406:Death in Venice
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49:16 April 1941
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976:. Retrieved
972:the original
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920:Tony Palmer
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810:Black Queen
804:Cranko, John
795:Brandenburg
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684:The Hostess
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625:Prodigal Son
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267:The Firebird
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103:Royal Ballet
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1082:1941 births
1019:Ballet News
995:Ballet News
968:"Governors"
588:La Bayadere
198:Glen Tetley
61:Keith Grant
1066:Categories
1057:John Gruen
954:References
882:Cast inc.
706:The Bride
689:Les Biches
621:The Siren
583:Variation
518:Adam, Theo
426:Cinderella
383:Josephine
233:Les Biches
194:Les Biches
186:Balanchine
141:Early life
850:Offenbach
814:Checkmate
781:Card Game
710:Les Noces
603:Choleric
495:Swan Lake
363:Lykanion
254:Composer
224:in 2010.
157:Swan Lake
127:Macmillan
99:ballerina
39:Swan Lake
1011:Archived
743:Concerto
739:Allegro
672:Serenade
571:Raymonda
535:Coppelia
461:La Valse
66:Children
1046:at the
978:29 June
530:Prayer
512:Giselle
507:Myrtha
251:Ballet
169:Giselle
885:Notes
843:Operas
348:Ondine
343:Berta
308:Enigma
289:Sylvia
210:Ondine
182:Ashton
150:Career
123:Ashton
84:Ballet
81:Dances
75:Career
58:Spouse
917:1981
895:1972
876:Year
873:Film
248:Role
239:Roles
1039:IMDb
980:2008
864:Film
184:and
133:and
125:and
46:Born
1037:at
852:'s
105:at
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213:.
982:.
831:*
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