Australia Dancing - Osato, Sono (1919

Osato, Sono (1919 - )

Photographer unknown: Portrait of Sono Osato, Ballets Russes, 1930s

Sono Osato was born in Omaha, Nebraska, to a Japanese father and an Irish-French Canadian mother. In Monte Carlo in the late 1920s Osato was inspired by a performance of Cleopatre by Diaghilev's Ballet Russe company. On her return to the United States in 1929 Osato began ballet classes with Adolph Bolm and later studied with his protegee and ballerina Berenice Holmes. Aged fourteen she auditioned for Colonel de Basil and his Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and toured with the company throughout the world.

Osato came to Australia on the second and third tours by de Basil's companies, those by the Covent Garden Russian Ballet (1938-1939) and the Original Ballet Russe (1939-1940). While she danced across the companies' extensive repertoire on both occasions, on the second tour, Osato danced her first principal role, that of the Siren in David Lichine's Prodigal Son. She alternated in this role with Irina Baronova and Tamara Grigorieva and was partnered for her debut by Lichine himself. During the third tour she appeared in newly choreographed works, including Schwezoff's Lutte eternelle and Serge Lifar's Icare. Of the experience of learning Icare with Lifar she has written

'Lifar's movement was rather unorthodox, relying heavily on syncopated steps that I thought were fun to learn and very enjoyable to perform.'

In the 1940s she danced in New York in a number of Broadway musicals including One touch of Venus and On the town.

Bibliography:

Sono Osato's autobiography was published as Distant Dances (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1980).

Research Materials

Ephemera | Picture | All

Other resources

Find more about Osato, Sono in:

Internet - Google
Articles - New York Public Library Dance Collection
Pictures - Picture Australia