Australia Dancing - de Basil, Wassily (1880

de Basil, Wassily (1880 - 1951)

Dupain, Max: Portrait of Colonel Wassily de Basil, 1940

Colonel Wassily de Basil came to Australia to oversee the visit by the Original Ballet Russe on a tour that began in 1939 and continued into 1940. Two other tours by the Russian Ballet companies, those by the Monte Carlo Russian Ballet (1936-1937) and the Covent Garden Russian Ballet (1938-1939), were directly related to his entrepreneurial activities although de Basil did not tour to Australia with these companies.

In a program introduction to de Basil and his mission, written for Australian audiences, the British dance writer Arnold Haskell stated:

He is ever eager to preserve the great tradition, to add to it and, especially, to see that youth has its say. It is, perhaps, in his uncanny flair for talent and in his courage that Colonel de Basil excels. When he re-animated Ballet, he did not depend upon names but on quality. He was prepared to face a public known to be snobbish with a handful of youngsters in whom he believed, and he was right. Those youngsters have made names, but de Basil has not been content to rest on his laurels. He believes that when once he has ceased "discovering", his mission will be at an end. The general public values, and rightly so, the entertainment value of Ballet, but the connoisseur recognises what can only be called The Basil touch; flair, courage and a touch of adventure that stops one taking his offerings for granted.

During his visit to Australia de Basil made efforts to commission work from Australians, especially from designers, who included Sidney Nolan and Kathleen and Florence Martin. In addition, he instigated a design competition for an original Australian ballet, which was won by Donald Friend with designs for a ballet based on a fictitious event in the life of Ned Kelly. He also auditioned Australian dancers and one, Valrene Tweedie, joined the Original Ballet Russe in Sydney in 1940.

Born in Kaunas as Vasily Grigorievich Voskresensky, de Basil first engaged in entrepreneurial activities in Paris in 1919 as a demobilised Russian refugee. He is said to have been a colonel in the cossack army although his claim to the title Colonel is disputed by some. Towards the end of 1931 he began issuing contracts for a ballet company, the Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo, which gave its first performance in Monte Carlo in 1932. From then on he directed Ballets Russes companies, which performed under a variety of different names, until the mid decades of the twentieth century.

Research Materials

Moving picture | Oral history | Picture | Printed music | All

Alston, Pearl S.: Alexander Philipoff, Nina Verchinina, Edouard Borovansky, Colonel Wassily de Basil, Olga Morosova and Tatiana Stepanova (left to right) watching a student performance during the tour to Australia of the Original Ballet Russe, 1940

Alston, Pearl S.: Alexander Philipoff, Nina Verchinina, Edouard Borovansky, Colonel Wassily de Basil, Olga Morosova and Tatiana Stepanova (left to right) watching a student performance during the tour to Australia of the Original Ballet Russe, 1940 (Picture): Borovansky, Edouard ; Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Verchinina, Nina; Location:; Geoffrey Ingram Archive of Australian Ballet; National Library of Australia; PIC P348/BR/139, Album 810/6
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[Ballets Russes : Aurora's Wedding], 1940 (Moving picture): Cast: Tamara Toumanova, Paul Petroff, Tatiana Riabouchinska and artists of the Ballets Russes companies.; 16 mm film, shot by Dr Joseph Ringland Anderson; black and white, no sound, 16 mins; A compilation of excerpts from Aurora's Wedding as performed in Australia in 1940 by the Original Ballet Russe. Some footage may predate 1940 and document the earlier Ballets Russes companies. Some backstage footage is also included and shows Colonel de Basil on stage talking to the dancers before curtain up.

Ringland Anderson Ballet Films.; Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Petroff, Paul ; Toumanova, Tamara ; Riabouchinska, Tatiana ; Aurora's Wedding; Location:; The Keep Dancing! Collection; National Film and Sound Archive; Title no: 483694

Pearl, S. Alston: Colonel Wassily de Basil (far left) and members of the Original Ballet Russe meeeting Borovansky and his students and dancers, 1940

Pearl, S. Alston: Colonel Wassily de Basil (far left) and members of the Original Ballet Russe meeeting Borovansky and his students and dancers, 1940 (Picture): De Basil company members (left to right) Colonel de Basil, Olga Morosova, Tatiana Stepanova, Nina Verchinina.; Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Borovansky, Edouard ; Verchinina, Nina; Location:; Geoffrey Ingram Archive of Australian Ballet; National Library of Australia; P348/BR/139
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Photographer unknown: Director and artists of Col. W. de Basil's Ballets Russes with American producer Sol Hurok on the company's first season in North America, New York, 1933 (Picture): Ballets Russes Australian tours; Location:; Kenneth Gillespie photograph collection, ca. 1933-1960 [picture]. ca. 1933-1960.; National Library of Australia; PIC/12585/1 LOC Box PIC/12585
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Photographer unknown: Director and artists of Col. W. de Basil's Ballets Russes with Sol Hurok during the company's first North American season , 1933

Photographer unknown: Director and artists of Col. W. de Basil's Ballets Russes with Sol Hurok during the company's first North American season , 1933 (Picture): Ballets Russes Australian tours; Location:; National Library of Australia; PIC/12585/1 LOC Box PIC/12585
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Sutherland, Margaret: Dithyramb: musical score, 1941 (Printed music): For orchestra. Caption title. Duration: 4:00. Stamped on cover: Australian Broadcasting Commission Federal Library Sydney, and on p. [1]: Guild of Australian Composers Victoria. "J & W Chester Ltd. London & Geneva No. 24"--Blind stamp on p. [1] Includes performance markings. An earlier version for piano was composed in 1939(?) In 1940, under dancer and choreographer Nina Verchinina, the piano version was used for 2 small-scale ballet perfomances, one a charity performance, by Col. W. de Basil's Ballet Russes. The work was orchestrated in 1941 and performed as a concert piece by Melbourne University Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra. Also played at various ABC orchestral concerts in Melbourne and Sydney, 1942-1946. A modified version was later choreographed by Laurel Martyn, and was one of four new ballets performed by the Ballet Guild in the opening program of its first season on 5 Nov. 1946 at the Repertory Theatre, Middle Park, Melbourne. Digital master available; National Library of Australia, Music collection; This score is available for viewing online.; Verchinina, Nina ; Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Martyn, Laurel ; Ballet Guild; Location:; National Library of Australia; MUS Symphony Australia Collection A/C SUT 05
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Borovansky, Edouard: Drawing of Colonel Wassily de Basil, New York, c. 1935

Borovansky, Edouard: Drawing of Colonel Wassily de Basil, New York, c. 1935 (Picture): Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Borovansky, Edouard; Location:; Geoffrey Ingram Archive of Australian Ballet; National Library of Australia; PIC R10988
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Pearl, S. Alston: Edouard Borovansky and Colonel de Basil filming the Borovansky Ballet in rehearsal, 1940

Pearl, S. Alston: Edouard Borovansky and Colonel de Basil filming the Borovansky Ballet in rehearsal, 1940 (Picture): Borovansky, Edouard ; Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Borovansky Ballet; Location:; Geoffrey Ingram Archive of Australian Ballet; National Library of Australia; P348/BR/137
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Interview with Anna Volkova, 2005 (Oral history): Interviewer: Michelle Potter; Interviewee: Volkova, Anna; Audiotape; 166 mins; Anna Volkova begins this interview with a discussion of her family background and her early dance training in Paris with former Russian Imperial ballerinas Olga Preobrajenska and Lubov Egorova. She continues with an in depth discussion of her career as a dancer with de Basil's Ballets Russes giving an account of the many tours she made with the companies, including two to Australia in 1938-1939 and 1939-1940. She discusses the symphonic ballets of Leonide Massine, including Les Presages and Choreartium, de Basil's skills as an entrepreneur and the importance to the company of Serge Grigoriev. She speaks about some of her favourite roles including the first waltz in Les Sylphides and the Golden Cockerel in Le Coq d'or. Other people she speaks about include choreographers Michel Fokine and David Lichine, and cinematographers Dr Ewan Murray-Will and Dr Joseph Ringland Anderson. Volkova concludes the interview with an account of the infamous Ballets Russes strike in Cuba in the early 1940s and her family life after moving to Australia to marry.; Volkova, Anna ; Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Grigoriev, Serge ; Lichine, David ; Murray-Will, Ewan ; Presages, Les ; Choreartium ; Fokine, Michel ; Coq d'or, Le; Location:; National Library of Australia; TRC 5391
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Interview with Barbara Hardy, 2007

Interview with Barbara Hardy, 2007 (Oral history): Interviewer: Lee Christofis; Interviewee: Hardy, Barbara; Audiofile; 1 sound file (ca. 32 mins); Barbara Hardy talks about her introduction to ballet and the Ballets Russes as a child in Adelaide; watching and participating in Ballets Russes performances and classes; Colonel W. de Basil; her ballet teacher Dorothy Slane; her thoughts on the demolition of the Theatre Royal Adelaide; her life after giving up ballet following the Ballets Russes tour; attending university and her work with the CSIRO; her marriage; her ongoing interest in ballet and dance; family life after the birth of her children; the Hardy family; the history of the Hardy vineyards and the South Australian wine industry; the interests of her mother-in-law Eileen Hardy; her work for the Nature Foundation S.A.; her ongoing involvement with institutions promoting scientific education; the importance of conservation to Australia; further on the Ballets Russes and its dancers.; Ballets Russes Australian tours; Location:; National Library of Australia; TRC 5786
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Interview with Kiril Vassilkovsky, 2006 (Oral history): Interviewer: Bill Stephens; Interviewee: Vassilkovsky, Kiril; Audiotape; Kiril Vassilkovsky born 1919, in Latvia, talks about his family background; his childhood in Latvia; childhood in England where his family moved when he was four years of age; his early involvement in ballet; being taught by Marie Rambert and Igor Schwezoff; financial arrangements and dancing for Igor Schwezoff; auditioning for Col. De Basil; being engaged by De Basil to tour Australia for the 1939/40 tour by Ballet Russes; rehearsals on the ship to Australia; Serge Lifar; David Lichine; dancing the role of the Drummer in Graduation Ball with the Borovansky Ballet; the dancers who made up the original Ballet Russes; first impressions of Australia; the Sydney Season and a trip to The Blue Mountains; accommodation in Sydney; Serge Grigoriev; social and working life for Ballet Russes; the 'baby' ballerinas; the salary; touring the U.S.A for Sol Hurok; being stranded in Cuba; reforming the company in Cuba; six years touring South and Central America; maintaining performance standards on tour; his bid for American citizenship working as a free-lance dancer; rejoining the Ballet Russes for its second European tour. Vassilkovsky discusses the Original Ballet Russe tour of England, following the death of De Basil in 1950; the condition of the costumes and sets at this time; life after the Ballets Russes; working in the Marquis de Cuevas Ballet; working as assistant to Bronislava Nijinska; Edouard Borovansky; developing the ability to reproduce ballets; accepting Borovansky's invitation to join his ballet company as co-repetiteur; his responsibilities as co-repetiteur and co-artistic director; the standard of the Borovansky dancers; advice from Borovansky; recommencing with the Borovansky Ballet as a soloist; choreographing Candide; dancing with Kathleen Gorham; the attraction of choreography; life after the Borovansky Ballet; an invitation to work as a teacher with the West Australian Ballet; the impact of Rex Reid as artistic director of the West Australian Ballet; an invitation from Luis Moreno to choreograph; teaching; reflects on his accomplishments; his London encore of the role of the Drummer in Graduation Ball; life in the Borovansky Ballet compared to life in the Ballet Russes.; Vassilkovsky, Kiril ; Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Lichine, David ; Graduation Ball ; Borovansky Ballet ; Grigoriev, Serge ; Borovansky, Edouard ; Gorham, Kathleen ; Lifar, Serge ; Reid, Rex ; West Australian Ballet; Location:; National Library of Australia; TRC 5704
nla.cat-vn3791501; Access open for research, written permission is required for personal copies and public use for 10 years from the date of the interview.

Interview with Perdita Eldridge, 2007

Interview with Perdita Eldridge, 2007 (Oral history): Interviewer: Lee Christofis; Interviewee: Eldridge, Perdita; Audiofile; 2 sound files; Perdita Eldridge talks about her adoption by (Elizabeth) Margaret Symon; Ballets Russes, Colonel W. de Basil (1932); the Depression, Sir Josiah Symon; the circumstances of the Symon family; the introduction of the Symon children to the arts; the interests and libraries of the youngest Symon son, Mary, Angel and Kilmeny Symon; her schooling; her mother?s nursery school (Inn Nursery School); Mary Symon?s interest in ballet; Henry Legerton; further on the Ballets Russes tour to the Adelaide Theatre Royal, sponsored by her mother; the tours by the Ballets Russes and the Royal Ballet; her memories of occasions in London with Henry Legerton and John Cranko; lessons from one of the Ballets Russes dancers during the Adelaide tour; presenting flower bouquets to Ballets Russes dancers during the Adelaide tour; the beginnings of her interest in puppets when in Perth; meeting her husband, William (Bill) Eldridge. Eldridge discusses touring in Salad days; studying and her experiences at the Central School of Speech and Drama, London; life in post war Britain, including rationing; the library and interests of (Elizabeth) Margaret Symon; the family of Sir Josiah Symon, in particular Mary and (Elizabeth) Margaret; the temperaments of Elizabeth (Margaret), Mary, Angel and Kilmeny Symon and her relationship with them; a personal tragedy and her divorce; the beginnings of her puppetry practice in England; her first puppet show in England; her continuing work as a puppeteer in England and Australia; returning to Australia (1972); life and her work as a puppeteer on her return to Australia; running puppeteer workshops in later life; Mary Symon and her involvement with puppets and the theatre; reflections on Australian culture and puppetry.; Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Legerton, Henry ; Royal Ballet Australian Tour, The; Location:; National Library of Australia; TRC 5785
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Interview with Valrene Tweedie, 2004 (Oral history): Interviewer: Michelle Potter; Interviewee: Tweedie, Valrene; Audiotape; 113 mins; In this interview Valrene Tweedie elaborates on some of the events and issues discussed in her earlier National Library interview conducted in 1988. In particular she talks about Leon Kellaway as a teacher, her audition for Colonel de Basil in Sydney in 1940, the de Basil Ballets Russes repertoire in Australia including Graduation Ball, her activities with the National Theatre Ballet including Tales of Hoffmann, her work Wakooka and the development of Ballet Australia. In the second part of the interview she discusses at some length her experiences as a dancer in Cuba and in the United States. Artists and works she refers to include the Alonso family, Luis Trapaga, Balanchine, Balustrade, Agnes de Mille, Les Presages, Fokine, Les Sylphides and Colonel de Basil.; Tweedie, Valrene ; Sylphides, Les ; Kellaway, Leon ; Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Graduation Ball ; National Theatre Ballet ; Wakooka ; Ballet Australia ; Presages, Les ; Fokine, Michel; Location:; National Library of Australia; TRC 5350
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Dupain, Max: Max Dupain's Dancers (Picture): This collection of images comprises photographs showing dancers of the touring Ballets Russes companies and dancers of the Kirsova Ballet and the Bodenwieser Ballet. Ballets Russes dancers and personnel include Irina Baronova, Colonel de Basil, Helene Kirsova, David Lichine, Serge Lifar, Sono Osato, Paul Petroff, Tamara Tchinarova, Tamara Toumanova and Igor Youskevitch. Ballets represented include L'Apres-midi d'un faune, Le Carnaval, Choreartium, Les Femmes de bonne humeur, Scheherazade, Le Spectre de La Rose and Le lac des cygnes (Swan Lake). Other images in the collection were taken at Frenchs Forest, a suburb of Sydney, and show Ludmilla Lvova, Tamara Toumanova and Paul Petroff in outdoor studies. Kirsova material includes portraits of Kirsova and scenes from some Kirsova productions. Bodenwieser material comprises outdoor studies.

The photos in this collection were printed by Dupain from his collection of negatives. Dupain signed them and dated them 1938 although in fact the images span the period 1936 to c. 1942 and were printed in 1990 for the exhibition, Max Dupain's Dancers.; Dupain, Max ; Kirsova, Helene ; Kirsova Ballet ; Bodenwieser Ballet ; Baronova, Irina ; Finch, Tamara Tchinarova ; Lichine, David ; Youskevitch, Igor ; Carnaval, Le ; Petroff, Paul ; Scheherazade ; Spectre de la rose, Le ; Osato, Sono ; Lifar, Serge ; Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Choreartium ; Femmes de bonne humeur, Les; Location:; National Library of Australia; PIC P41-P61, P105
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Seymour, Maurice: Portrait of Colonel de Basil [1], 1930s

Seymour, Maurice: Portrait of Colonel de Basil [1], 1930s (Picture): Ballets Russes Australian tours; Location:; Geoffrey Ingram Archive of Australian Ballet; National Library of Australia; PIC P348/BR/133, Album 810/6
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Seymour, Maurice: Portrait of Colonel de Basil [2], 1930s

Seymour, Maurice: Portrait of Colonel de Basil [2], 1930s (Picture): Ballets Russes Australian tours; Location:; Geoffrey Ingram Archive of Australian Ballet; National Library of Australia; PIC P348/BR/134, Album 810/6
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Portraits of members of the Ballets Russes, 1950 (Picture): This collection of paintings and drawings by Edouard Borovansky contains images of several members of the Ballets Russes including Colonel de Basil, Serge Grigorieff, Irina Baronova, David Lichine, Mi Ladre and Paul Petroff.; Baronova, Irina ; Ballets Russes Australian tours ; Borovansky, Edouard ; Lichine, David ; Petroff, Paul ; Grigoriev, Serge; Location:; National Library of Australia; R10481-R10531; R10884; R10988-R10989

Photographer unknown: Valrene Tweedie (14 years old) with Colonel de Basil after being accepted for his ballet company, Sydney, 1940

Photographer unknown: Valrene Tweedie (14 years old) with Colonel de Basil after being accepted for his ballet company, Sydney, 1940 (Picture): Tweedie, Valrene ; Ballets Russes Australian tours; Location:; National Library of Australia; PIC P1941/3
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