people » Sheilah O’Reilly

Sheilah O’Reilly (1931-2019). Dancer and teacher

Of Irish extraction, Sheilah O’Reilly was born in Bexley. She studied at the Sadler’s Wells Ballet School, and in 1946 became an original member of Sadler’s Wells Theatre Ballet. O’Reilly became a principal dancer there, creating roles in Celia Franca’s Khadra and John Cranko’s Sea Change, but retired due to injury in 1955. She then went to Paris, where she taught professional dancers in the 1960s before moving to La Barre en Ouche in Normandy, where she continued to teach. She died in Normandy in 2019.

Timeline Event » 1946 – First performances by Sadler’s Wells Opera Ballet, later Sadler’s Wells Theatre Ballet

Having appeared in operas at Sadler’s Wells, the new Sadler’s Wells Opera Ballet’s first purely ballet evening took place on 8 April, 1946, with a programme comprising Ninette de Valois’ 1943...

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Timeline Event » 1951 – Premiere of John Cranko’s Pineapple Poll by Sadler’s Wells Theatre Ballet

Pineapple Poll is an exuberant, comic ballet in three scenes, with choreography by John Cranko, music by Sir Arthur Sullivan (arranged by Charles Mackerras), and sets and costumes designed by Osbert...

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