Mia Slavenska: la formazione di una danzatrice a cavallo tra due mondi

Abstract

Mia Slavenska (1916-2002) was an eclectic Croatian artist. She was a multifaceted dancer and versatile choreographer, as well as teacher and film actress. During her career, Slavenska came in contact with the greatest exponents of twentieth-century dance scene (Bronislava Nižinskaja, Serge Lifar, Léonide Massine) and participated at some of the main artistic events of her time (in 1936 she was at the Berlin Olympics games). In 1943, Slavenska decided to start a new course of studies in New York with Vincenzo Celli, one of the last pupils of the Italian master Enrico Cecchetti. The essay retraces the first years of Slavenska’s career, then focuses on the formative moment with Celli and the different didactic currents of twentieth-century academic dance.