Antonietta Dell'Era
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Antonietta Dell'Era (10 February 1860 Milan — 22 June 1945 Berlin) was an Italian prima ballerina best known for originating the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy in Tchaikovsky's ballet, The Nutcracker (1892).[1][2]
Antonietta Dell'Era | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 10 February 1860 |
| Died | 22 June 1945 |
The Nutcracker
Between 1879 and 1909, Dell'Era had a successful career at the Berlin Opera,[3] receiving praise from many critics and writers including author and poet Theodor Fontane.[4] Between 1886 and 1894, she danced in Russia, mainly in St. Petersburg, as an export of the "Italian Invasion" - an influx of talented Italian dancers to Russia that included Pierina Legnani,[5] Enrico Cecchetti, and Virginia Zucchi.[6][7]
In 1892, Dell'Era created the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker, a new ballet conceived by mastermind choreographer Marius Petipa[4] and composed by Pyotr Tchaikovsky.[8] The ballet premièred at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg on December 17, 1892, as a double feature alongside Tchaikovsky's last opera, Iolanta; tickets to the première were sold out.[4][9][1] Dell'Era reportedly received five curtain calls, but critical reception of the ballet was poor.[8][1] Russian ballet dancer Nicolai Solyannikov was unimpressed by Dell'Era's performance: "this coarse, ungraceful dancer is much to the German taste".[9] The influence of politics and current affairs on the evolution of ballet is well-documented, and during Dell'Era‘s time as a leading ballerina in Russia, dancers were influenced by the rise of expressionism and increasing opposition to the rigidity of classic ballet;[3] she had in fact received better critical reception for her role as Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty.[9]
