Royal Ballet

Royal Ballet, principal ballet company of Great Britain. It consists of three divisions: a resident company, based in London; a touring company, based in Birmingham, England; and the Royal Ballet School, located in London.

The Royal Ballet was founded in 1931, originating in a school opened by British dancer and choreographer Ninette de Valois. The company was first known as the Vic-Wells Ballet and gave its first performances at the Old Vic Theatre and Sadler's Wells Theatre in London. The company soon made its home at Sadler's Wells Theatre, with de Valois as artistic director and British composer and conductor Constant Lambert as musical director. In 1935, when British dancer and choreographer Frederick Ashton became the company's choreographer, the Royal Ballet entered a period of intense creativity inspired by the impressive technique and musical sensitivity of British dancer Margot Fonteyn. By 1939, with the assistance of dance notations from Russian dancer Nicholas Sergeyev, the company had revived all the major classical ballets, including Swan Lake (1934), Giselle (1934), and The Sleeping Beauty (1939).

During World War II (1939-1945) the company received popular and critical acclaim, and in 1946 it became the resident company of the Royal Opera House in London. Its first performance there was The Sleeping Beauty (1946), a ballet created by 19th-century French-born choreographer Marius Petipa. In 1949 the company won international recognition with its New York City performance of this ballet. Works choreographed by Ashton, such as Symphonic Variations (1946) and Cinderella (1948), continued to build the Royal Ballet's reputation. A second company, directed by British dancer Peggy Van Praagh and based at Sadler's Wells Theatre, was founded in 1946. It grew into maturity as a training ground for young dancers and choreographers such as South African choreographer John Cranko and Scottish choreographer Kenneth MacMillan. The school also developed, and in 1956 all three institutions became the Royal Ballet by royal charter.

In the 1960s Russian dancer Rudolf Nureyev performed with the Royal Ballet. The frequent pairing of Nureyev with Fonteyn earned the company worldwide fame and popularity. Ashton became the company's director in 1963 and introduced some significant works, including Les Noces (1966), by Russian choreographer Bronislava Nijinska. During this time the second company toured widely, performing a popular repertoire of classical ballets and major revivals of other ballets.

In 1970, under the direction of Kenneth MacMillan, the three companies of the Royal Ballet were reorganized into one large company that included an experimental touring group. By 1975 the three-company structure had been restored, and the second company was ultimately based in Birmingham. British dancer Anthony Dowell became director of the Royal Ballet in 1986, and under his direction the company has concentrated on reviving the classical ballets and developing the British ballet repertoire.