Frederick Ashton choreographed Les Patineurs for the Vic-Wells Ballet in 1937. A group of 15 dancers ‘skate’ their way through this exuberant one-act ballet. An icy pond on the edge of a snowy...
people » Mary Honer
Mary Honer (1913-1965). British dancer, teacher and founder of Embassy Ballet with Molly Lake
Mary Honer was born in London in 1913. She studied dancing with Judith Espinosa, Margaret Craske and Nicholas Legat, another dancer of this era who had a foundation in both Italian and Russian schooling. She started her career in musical comedy, but her destiny was with the Vic-Wells Ballet. She joined the company in 1936 and stayed with them until 1942, having reached ballerina status and created roles for the young, but exceptional choreographer, Frederick Ashton. She had a career as an actress on leaving the company before opening a school and then joining forces with Molly Lake to create Embassy Ballet in 1946. She died in London in 1965.
First performance of The Sleeping Princess by the Vic-Wells Ballet, with choreography by Marius Petipa staged by Nicholas Sergeyev, music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and designs by Nadia Benois. The...
Established as a “non-profit making organisation to encourage and develop the art of ballet”, the founding members of The Ballet Guild included Christmas Humphreys, Keith Lester, Derrick Lynham,...