John Cranko created Onegin in 1965 for his company, Stuttgart Ballet, using his star dancers Marcia Haydée and Ray Barra to create the roles of Tatiana and Onegin respectively, with Egon Madsen as...
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Egon Madsen (1942-) Danish-born dancer, teacher and director
Egon Madsen was born in Denmark in 1942. He studied privately until 1957, when he joined the Pantomime Theatre in Copenhagen’s Tivoli Gardens. From the Scandinavian Ballet, which he joined in 1959, he became a member of Stuttgart Ballet in 1961. It was there that his extraordinary career developed.
Madsen became a muse of John Cranko, the then director and choreographer of Stuttgart Ballet, and created many roles for him. He was also the original Messenger of Death in Kenneth MacMillan’s ballet Song of the Earth in 1965. During the 1980s Madsen directed many prestigious companies, returning to Stuttgart for six years in the early 1990s. He directed Leipzig Ballet from 1997 to 1999 when started performing on stage again with Nederlands Dans Theater 3. There he remained, until its disbandment in 2006. Remarkably, although continuing to teach and coach internationally, Madsen did not retire from dancing until 2022.