Australia Dancing - de Masson, Paul (1953

de Masson, Paul (1953 - 2012)

Stringer, Walter: Paul de Masson and artists of the Australian Ballet in Act III of 'Don Quixote', ca. 1979

Born in Perth Western Australia, Paul de Masson took his first ballet classes with teachers Kira Bousloff and Kiril Vassilkovsky, who settled in Australia after performing with the de Basil Ballets Russes companies. Paul de Masson rose to prominence after joining West Australian Ballet at the age of fourteen and dancing such roles as Harlequin in Michel Fokine's Carnaval, the Drummer Boy in David Lichine's Graduation Ball and Captain Belay in John Cranko's Pinapple Poll. His repertoire expanded rapidly after leaving Australia. He joined Roland Petit's Ballet de Marseilles where he danced in Petit's Pink Floyd Ballet with the rock bank onstage, and in Rose Malade with Russian ballerina, Maya Plisetskaya. At London Festival Ballet, he extended his Ballets Russes repertoire dancing in Fokine's Scheherazade, Les Sylphides and Prince Igor, and Leonide Massine's Gaite Parisienne, Parade and Le Tricorne. Modern ballets suited him well: Antony Tudor's Echoing of Trumpets, Jack Carter's The Witchboy, Serge Lifar's Suite en Blanc and Barry Moreland's Prodigal Son. In the traditional repertoire he danced in Mary Skeaping's Giselle and Nureyev's Sleeping Beauty.

Paul de Masson returned to Australia in 1976 and rose to principal rank in the Australian Ballet dancing all leading roles in the classical repertoire, where his dramatic, actorly qualities were well used. He excelled in the modern repertoire: The Outsider in Robert Helpmann's The Display, the Chosen One in Glen Tetley's Rite of Spring, Vronsky in Andre Prokovsky's Anna Karenina and The Man in Kenneth MacMillan's Las Hermanas. He revealed a comedic talent in Frederick Ashton's La fille mal gardee, playing both Colas and the Widow Simone, The Husband in Jerome Robbins' The Concert, Petrucchio in Cranko's Taming of the Shrew and Mercutio in Cranko's Romeo and Juliet.

A popular guest artist, Paul de Masson performed with the Queensland Ballet, West Australian Ballet, Norwegian National Ballet and, after 1988, the Australian Ballet. He assisted many choreographers in staging and reproducing work from the Ballets Russes and traditional repertoires when he took up the position of ballet master, first with the Australian Ballet then the Royal Danish and Hamburg Ballets before joining the Singapore Dance Theatre.

In 2008 de Masson partnered Maina Gielgud in the Australian premiere in Sydney of Bejart's The Exquisite Hour. He returned as guest artist to the Australian Ballet in 2011 to play the roles of Yamadori and the Bonze in Madame Butterfly. He also played Njegus, secretary to the Pontevedrian ambassador in The Merry Widow, at the State Theatre, Melbourne, in what were to be his last performances.

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Articles - New York Public Library Dance Collection
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