This year is the 75th anniversary of ballet legend Rudolf Nureyev’s birth, and 20 years since his death. How much do you know about one of the most celebrated dancers of the 20th century?
1. With which ballet did Nureyev make his directorial debut?
a) The Afternoon of a Faun
b) Petrouchka
c) Pineapple Poll
d) Don Quixote
2. Nureyev’s first performance in Britain was held to support which organization?
a) The Royal Academy of Dance
b) The Royal Ballet School
c) The Royal Ballet
d) The Royal Opera
3. Giving his mother a shock, Nureyev was born prematurely in a
a) boat
b) train
c) car
d) plane
4. Nureyev danced with many of the best ballerinas of his time, but with whom did he say he danced with “one body, one soul”?
a) Eva Evdokimova
b) Margot Fonteyn
c) Gelsey Kirkland
d) Antoinette Sibley
5. Nureyev danced with Miss Piggy on the Muppet Show (check it out on YouTube – it’s a classic!). Which ballet did they perform a parody of?
a) Cinderella
b) The Nutcracker
c) Swan Lake
d) Manon
6. In which company was Nureyev director, dancer and chief of choreography during the 1980s?
a) The Royal Ballet
b) The Paris Opera Ballet
c) Dutch National Ballet
d) American Ballet Theatre
7. Which ballet by Sir Frederick Ashton was premiered by Fonteyn and Nureyev, and would become known as their signature piece?
a) Marguerite and Armand
b) Baroque Pas de Trois
c) Romeo and Juliet
d) Les Sylphides
8. To which country did Nureyev defect in 1961?
a) America
b) United Kingdom
c) Austria
d) France
9. In the 1970s, Nureyev toured the USA in a production of which musical?
a) Fiddler on the Roof
b) Cats
c) Kiss Me Kate
d) The King and I
10. Nureyev played a violinist in the 1983 film Exposed, alongside which Hollywood actor?
a) Harvey Keitel
b) Marlon Brando
c) Robert De Niro
d) Russell Crowe
Answers:
1 – d; 2 – a; 3 – b; 4 – b; 5 – c; 6 – b; 7 – a; 8 – d; 9 – d; 10 – a
Photo: Rudolf Nureyev by Jack Mitchell. Photo source http://onlyartimages.blogspot.com/2011/04/rudolf-nureyev.html
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