Filippo Taglioni - dancer and choreographer

Father of star ballerina was pioneer of Romantic ballet

Filippo Taglioni's portrait, the original of
which is at Teatro alla Scala in Milan

The dancer and choreographer Filippo Taglioni, who choreographed the original version of the ballet classic La Sylphide for his ballerina daughter Marie Taglioni, was born on this day in 1777 in Milan.

La Sylphide was one of the earliest works to represent a new ballet genre, which became known as Romantic ballet, that gained popularity in the 19th century as an alternative to traditional classical ballet.  Romantic ballet was different in that the characters were recognisable as real people rather than the gods and goddesses and strange creatures from Roman and Greek mythology that populated classical ballet.

The work, which premiered at the Salle Le Peletier of the Paris Opéra in 1832, cemented Marie Taglioni’s status as a star, the prima ballerina of the Romantic movement, although the version performed today - the only version to have survived - was choreographed by the Danish ballet master August Bournonville in 1836.

Filippo was part of an Italian dancing dynasty of the 18th and 19th centuries. His father and mother, Carlo Taglioni and Maria Petracchi, were both dancers. Carlo, who was born in Turin, worked in Venice, Rome, Siena and Udine.

Taglioni's daughter, Marie, pictured in a
performance of La Sylphide

As well as Marie, Filippo had a son, Paul Taglioni, who was a successful choreographer and the father of another dancer, Marie Taglioni the younger. Filippo’s brother, Salvatore Taglioni, was father of Luisa Taglioni, who was a ballerina of the Paris Opéra, and Fernando Taglioni, who became a respected composer.

Trained for the most part by the Neapolitan dancer Carlo Blasis and Jean-François Coulon, Filippo made his debut at 17 in Pisa, playing female roles, and after appearing in other Italian cities joined the Paris Opéra at the age of 22, before moving to Stockholm to be principal dancer and ballet master for the Royal Swedish Ballet.

It was while he was living in Stockholm that he married the dancer Sophie Karsten, daughter of a famous Swedish opera singer Christoffer Christian Karsten and a Polish actress, Sophie Stebnowska.

Their two children were born early in the marriage and after living for a number of years in Vienna and Germany they moved to Paris to escape the the Napoleonic wars.  Filippo danced and choreographed in different parts of Europe before accepting a permanent position in Vienna.

Filippo Taglioni made his daughter, Marie,
practise six hours a day for six months

Filippo had left his daughter, Marie, to study ballet in Paris but in time summoned her to join him in Vienna, where he began training her himself, making her practice six hours a day for six months until she mastered her jumps and pointe work. When he judged her to be ready he took her back to Paris.

Marie soon became popular and Filippo was able to negotiate a six-year contract for the two of them. He unveiled La Sylphide to huge acclaim and its success established Marie as the pre-eminent prima ballerina of the Romantic period, as well as making him its most renowned choreographer.

The two toured Europe and Russia and were well rewarded, although Filippo lost a good deal of his daughter’s fortune in through unwise and speculative investments.

His legacy, though, was to have changed the nature of ballet. Although the Romantic movement began to decline at the start of the 20th century, it produced works of lasting popularity such as Delibes’s Coppélia (1870) and Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake (1876) and The Nutcracker (1892).

Filippo Taglioni died in Como in 1871, at the age of 93.

The Teatro Verdi in Pisa was opened in November 1867

Travel tip:

The principal venue for ballet and opera in Pisa is the Teatro Verdi in Via Palestro, built in the mid-19th century in the style of classic theatre architecture to designs by the Venetian architect Andrea Scala, who won a competition organised by the architect and politician Ranieri Simonelli, a prominent Pisan citizen of the day. Completed in 1867, it was inaugurated on November 12 of that year with a performance of Gioachino Rossini’s opera William Tell. It began to stage ballet as well as opera in the latter part of the 19th century.  Taglioni is likely to have performed at the Regia Teatro Nuovo, which the Teatro Verdi replaced.

The beautiful Villa Olmo on Lake Como

Travel tip:

Como, where Taglioni died, is a city at the southern end of Lake Como. It has become a popular tourist destination because it is close to the lake and has many attractive churches, gardens, museums, theatres, parks and palaces to visit. The Villa Olmo, built in neoclassical style there in 1797 by an aristocratic family, has hosted Napoleon, Ugo Foscolo, Prince Metternich, Archduke Franz Ferdinand I and Giuseppe Garibaldi, to name but a few of the eminent people who have stayed there.

More reading:

Fanny Cerrito - the Neapolitan ballerina who wowed Europe

Pierina Legnani - the Italian who conquered St Petersburg

How Strictly Come Dancing judge Bruno Tonioli dealt with playground bullies

Also on this day:

1702: The birth of Venetian painter Pietro Longhi

1754: The birth of explorer Alessandro Malaspina

1898: The birth of Francesco Chiarello, soldier who survived two World Wars


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Alessandra Ferri – ballerina

Dancing star who believes age is a matter of attitude

Alessandra Ferri made a comeback in ballet
six years after her 'retirement'

Prima ballerina assoluta Alessandra Ferri, who retired in 2007 but then made a triumphant return to ballet in 2013, celebrates her 55th birthday today.

She is scheduled to dance at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York later this month, at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow at the beginning of June, at Hamburg Staatsoper at the end of June, at the Ravello Festival in Italy in July and in Tokyo in August.

In a recent newspaper interview, Ferri said she was happy to be breaking barriers as an older woman in a youth-dominated world. She said she still has full confidence in her abilities and believes ageing is largely an attitude and her advice to other women of her age is ‘to keep moving’.

Ferri was born on May 6, 1963 in Milan and began studying ballet at La Scala Theatre Ballet School. She moved to the upper school of the Royal Ballet School in London, where she won a scholarship that enabled her to continue studying there.

She joined the Royal Ballet in 1980 and won the Laurence Olivier Award for her first major role in 1982. She was promoted to the rank of principal dancer in 1983.

Ferri became principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre under the direction of Mikhail Baryshnikow in 1985.

Ferri in a production of Remeo and Juliet in 2016

She began a close association with La Scala Theatre Ballet in 1992, becoming recognised as prima ballerina assoluta of the company, but she remained a guest star of the American Ballet Theatre. 'Prima ballerina assoluta' is a title awarded to the most notable of female ballet dancers of their generation and is a rare honour.

Ferri has appeared at the top venues for ballet all over the world and has performed with the leading male dancers, including Rudolf Nureyev in Los Angeles on the occasion of his 50th birthday in 1988.

She married the photographer, Fabrizio Ferri, with whom she had two daughters.

Since her return from retirement, Ferri has danced roles in Italy and at the Royal Ballet and Royal Opera House in London. After her birthday celebrations today she has a packed schedule of appearances for the rest of the year.

The entrance to Villa Rufolo is off
the main scare in Ravello

Travel tip:

Alessandra Ferri will dance on July 7 at the Belvedere di Villa Rufolo in Ravello for the town’s 2018 music and arts festival. The Villa Rufolo, dating from the 13th century, overlooks the cathedral square of Ravello, a town perched high above the dramatic Amalfi Coast.

Travel tip:

La Scala Theatre Ballet School, where Alessandra Ferri studied, was founded in 1813 in association with the international ballet company based at Teatro alla Scala in Milan. The theatre is in Piazza della Scala in the centre of the city across the road from the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, an elegant arcade lined with cafes, shops and restaurants, built to link Piazza della Scala with Piazza del Duomo, Milan’s cathedral square.

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Simone Di Pasquale – dancer

Ballroom talent has been springboard for business success

Simone Di Pasquale is a regular on the
Italian TV show Ballando con le Stelle

Ballroom dancer and television celebrity Simone Di Pasquale was born on this day in 1978.

In 2005, he became a household name after he started to appear regularly on Italian television in Ballando con le Stelle - the equivalent of the US show Dancing with the Stars and Britain’s Strictly Come Dancing. The annual show, presented by Milly Carlucci, is broadcast every Saturday evening on the tv channel Rai Uno during the season.

Pasquale has also appeared in numerous other television programmes, on stage in musical theatre and as an actor in a television drama.

Born in Rome, Di Pasquale learnt ballroom dancing at a young age and took part in competitions.

In 2000 he paired up with the dancer Natalia Titova, who also later became a celebrity because of Ballando con le Stelle. The couple were engaged from 1998 to 2005.

They took first place in the competition Rising Stars UK in 2004.

In the first season of Ballando con le Stelle, Di Pasquale partnered the Italian actress Hoara Borselli and the couple won the competition. He has taken part in each successive series since. The 2018 season of the show is due to begin on March 10 and will be broadcast live on Rai Uno every Saturday night.

Di Pasquale has appeared as a guest on numerous programmes on Italian television and had a role in an episode of the long running crime series, Don Matteo.

Di Pasquale and actress Hoara Borselli won the first
series of the Ballando con le stelle competition

He has also appeared on many famous stages in the musicals, Saturday Night Fever and Hairspray: Fat is beautiful!

Di Pasquale has dance schools in Rome, Florence, Milan, and Bologna and runs the company, Twister Entertainment, which organises events and dance and entertainment initiatives.

He presented the final of the European Championship of Tango in 2013, which was broadcast from Rome on Rai Uno and he also was part of the Canadian tour of Ballando con le Stelle in 2014, which was renamed Dances with Milly.

In January 2018, he was production director for the prestigious La Notte delle Stelle, a pro-am dance competition held at the Parco dei Principi in Rome.

Mussolini had hoped his new stadium in Rome would
host the Olympic Games in 1944

Travel tip:

Ballando con le Stelle is broadcast from Rai's studio in Piazza Lauro de Bosis close to Foro Italico in Rome. Formerly named Foro Mussolini, the Olympic Stadium was built between 1928 and 1938 to a design by Enrico del Debbio and Luigi Moretti inspired by the Roman forums of the Imperial age. The purpose of the prestigious project was to secure the Olympic Games of 1944 for Fascist-run Italy, although in the event there were no Games that year because of the Second World War.

Rome hotels from Booking.com

The Villa Borghese gardens date back to 1605

Travel tip:

The pro-am dance competition produced and directed by Di Pasquale in January was held at the Grand Hotel Parco dei Principi, which is in one of the most prestigious locations in Rome, on the edge of the Villa Borghese gardens and close to the Via Veneto. The beautiful Villa Borghese gardens date back to 1605 when Cardinal Scipione Borghese, nephew of Pope Paul V, commissioned the work to turn a former vineyard into the most extensive gardens built in Rome since the days of the republic.

More reading:

Marco Delvecchio - the footballer who became a dance show star

Italy's Strictly Come Dancing judge Bruno Tonioli

Flavia Cacace - the Strictly star famous for Argentine tango

Also on 27 February:

1935: The birth of opera star Mirella Freni

1950: The birth of fashion designer Franco Moschino

1964: Italy appeals for help in Leaning Tower scare

1973: The birth of singer and actress Chiara Iezzi

Books:

Bruno Tonioli: My Story

(Picture credits: Stadio dei Marmi by Blackcat; Borghese Gardens by Jean-Christophe Benoist; via Wikimedia Commons)

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Flavia Cacace - dancer

Star of Strictly Come Dancing famous for Argentine Tango

Flavia Cacace became a well known
face through Strictly Come Dancing

The dancer Flavia Cacace, who found fame through the British hit television show, Strictly Come Dancing, was born on this day in 1980 in Naples.

She and professional partner Vincent Simone, who is from Puglia, performed on the show for seven seasons from 2006 to 2012.

The show, which has been mimicked in more than 50 countries across the world, including Italy and the United States, pairs celebrities with professional dancers, combining Latin and ballroom dances in a competition lasting several months.

Cacace, who was runner-up in 2007 with British actor Matt d'Angelo, left the show as champion in 2012 after she and the British Olympic gymnast Louis Smith won the final, which was watched by an estimated 13.35 million viewers.

The youngest of six children, Cacace moved to England shortly before her fifth birthday when her father, Roberto, a chef, decided to look for work opportunities in London.

Her family are from the Vomero district of Naples, a smart neighbourhood that occupies an elevated position on a hill overlooking the city, offering spectacular views. Although more than 30 years have passed since she left the area, Cacace has been quoted as saying that she still considers herself Neapolitan.

A hazy view of Mount Vesuvius across Naples
from the top of Vomero Hill

Cacace attended the St Peter's Roman Catholic School in the town of Guildford in Surrey, about 43km (27 miles) south-west of central London.

She was introduced to dancing at the age of six when her mother, Rosaria, keen to find her an activity outside school, took her and her eldest sister to Hurley's dance school in Guildford, unaware that it had a reputation for Latin and ballroom tuition that attracted dancers from around the world.

Her talent shone through and she began to win medals at an early age.  It was at Hurley's, at the age of 14, that she met Simone, who had arrived in the UK at the age of 17 and was looking for a partner.

The two formed a professional relationship and won a string of titles together, including numerous UK Ballroom, Ten-dance and Showdance championships.  They have been UK Argentine Tango champions and world Argentine Tango Showdance champions.

The Argentine Tango became their trademark and for several years they have been on tour with a series of glitzy stage productions, including Midnight Tango and Dance 'Til Dawn, both of which were sell-outs.  They announced last year, however, that their 2016 tour The Last Tango, would mark the end of their career on the road.

Their professional partnership turned into a romance for several years before they went different ways after Cacace began a relationship with Strictly partner D'Angelo.

Flavia Cacace on Strictly with Jimi Mistry, now her husband

Simone is now married with two children, having met his future wife, Susan, in the bar after a show during the 2007 Strictly series, when she had been in the audience as a fan.

Cacace is married to Jimi Mistry, a Yorkshire-born actor who was her celebrity partner in the 2010 series of Strictly.  They were married in London in 2013 and live in Jacobs Well, a village just outside Guildford.

She has been approached several times about appearing on the Italian version of Strictly - entitled Ballando con le Stelle (Dancing with the Stars) - but has been unable so far to take up any offers.  Ballando is currently in its 12th series on the Rai Uno channel.

Castel Sant'Elmo (left) and the Certosa San Martino

Travel tip:

Vomero is a middle class largely residential area of central Naples but has a number of buildings of historic significance. The most dominant, on top of Vomero Hill, is the large medieval fortress, Castel Sant'Elmo, which stands guard over the city. In front of the fortress is the Certosa San Martino, the former Carthusian monastery, now a museum.  Walk along the adjoining street, Largo San Martino, to enjoy extraordinary views over the city towards Vesuvius.  Vomero's other tourist attraction is the Villa Floridiana, once the home of Ferdinand I, the Bourbon King of the Two Sicilies.  Surrounded by extensive gardens, the building now houses the Duke of Martina National Museum of Ceramics.

Naples hotels by Booking.com

The Cathedral of Santa Maria
Icona Vetere in Foggia

Travel tip:

Foggia, where Vincent Simone was born, is a largely modern city, much of it rebuilt following heavy bombardment during the Second World War.  Nonetheless, there are some attractive features, including the 12th-century Cathedral of Santa Maria Icona Vetere, off Piazza del Lago. The present campanile replaced the one destroyed in a major earthquake in 1731. The opera composer Umberto Giordano, born in Foggia, is commemorated with a theatre that bears his name and a square, Piazza Umberto Giordano, that contains several statues representing his most famous works.

Find a hotel in Foggia with Tripadvisor

More reading:

How Strictly judge Bruno Tonioli dealt with playground bullies

Fanny Cerrito, the Neapolitan ballet star who wowed audiences across Europe

When Vomero was home to King Francis I

Also on this day:

1925: The birth of actor Corrado Gaipa

1955: The birth of World Cup-winner Bruno Conti

1960: The birth of rock musician Ligabue



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Bruno Tonioli - dance show judge

Dancer and choreographer is star of Strictly Come Dancing

Strictly Come Dancing judge Bruno Tonioli

Dancer, choreographer and television dance show judge Bruno Tonioli was born on this day in 1955 in Ferrara in north-east Italy.

Tonioli is one of the judging panel of Strictly Come Dancing on British TV and on its US equivalent Dancing With the Stars, which requires him to divide his time between London and New York when seasons overlap.

He began his showbusiness career in the 1980s as a member of the Paris-based dance company La Grande Eugène before moving into the music industry as a choreographer.

Among the artists he has worked with are Tina Turner, Sting, Elton John, the Rolling Stones, Freddie Mercury, Sinitta, Boy George, Dead or Alive, and Duran Duran.

Tonioli has also worked on numerous films and television shows including Little Voice, The Gathering Storm, Dancin' thru the Dark and Enigma.

He also has a number of acting credits, including the role of Peppino, manservant to Michael Gambon's Oscar Wilde in the BBC production Oscar.  Tonioli appeared as himself in the movie version of the BBC comedy Absolutely Fabulous.

Renowned for his flamboyantly wild gestures and amusingly extravagant comments, Tonioli has been a member of the Strictly Come Dancing team since the show's launch in 2004 and is now into his 14th series alongside fellow ever-presents Len Goodman and Craig Revel-Horwood.  He was hired to judge on Dancing With the Stars when that show launched in 2005.

Bruno Tonioli is renowned for his wild gestures

The son of a bus driver, Werther Tonioli, and a seamstress mother, Fulvia, Tonioli was 12 before the family could afford their own apartment in Ferrara. Until then they had lived with his father's parents.

He knew from an early age that he was gay, although he said in a newspaper interview in 2005 that the subject of his sexuality was never discussed at home.  He believes his parents, who were strict Catholics, would not have wanted to contemplate the possibility at the time, although not out of shame but for fear of how others might judge him.

He said he was bullied and threatened at school but fought back by growing his hair long, smoking expensive cigarettes, wearing the latest in cool clothes and becoming friends with the best-looking girls among his peer group, after which he became popular and acceptable.

Tonioli's love of the theatre began when he the film version of the musical Cabaret, starring Liza Minnelli, came to Ferrara in 1972.  He saw it eight times and realised he wanted dance to be his career. Others boys of his age wanted to play football but he was much more interested in theatre and the arts.

His parents were keen for him to find a steady job, perhaps in a bank.  Instead, he left for Rome to enrol at ballet school, leaving Italy for Paris at the age of 18.  Both his parents are now dead but he says he was reconciled with them long before they passed away.

From Paris he moved to London, joining another dance company and finding work in television and the West End as a choreographer.  The English capital has been his home almost ever since.

The Palazzo dei Diamanti in Ferrara

Travel tip:

Apart from the impressively well preserved Castello Estense right at the heart of the city, Ferrara - situated midway between Bologna and Venice in Emilia-Romagna - has many notable architectural gems, including many palaces from the 14th and 15th centuries.  Among them is the striking Palazzo dei Diamanti, so-called because the stone blocks of its facade are cut into the shape of diamonds. The palace holds the National Picture Gallery, which houses many works from the  masters of the 16th-century School of Ferrara, including Lorenzo Costa, Dosso Dossi, Girolamo da Carpi and Benvenuto Tisi.

Travel tip:

Rome's prestigious ballet school of the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma was established in 1928 and is one of the oldest and most respected vocational schools in Italy. It can be found in Via Ozieri in a charming cottage set in a secluded and quiet street in the San Giovanni neighbourhood to the south-east of the city, near the ruins of the Felice Aqueduct. Director Luchino Visconti in 1951 chose it as the location for shooting some scenes of his film Beautiful, starring the Roman actress Anna Magnani.


Books: Bruno: My Story, by Bruno Tonioli (Headline)

More reading:

Antonio Carluccio - chef and restaurateur who settled in London

How Luca Zingaretti found fame as TV detective Montalbano

Pierina Legnani - Italian dancer who conquered St Petersburg

Also on this day:

1881: The Birth of Angelo Roncalli, the Bergamo farmer's son who became Pope John XXIII

(Picture credits: Bruno Tonioli pictures from YouTube; Palazzo dei Diamante by Sansa55 via Wikimedia Commons)

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