Léonide Massine

Léonide and Tania had two children, Lorca (born 1943) and Tania (born 1945)

He was once considered the greatest choreographer of the 20th century. His fame was eventually eclipsed in the United States by that of George Balanchine. Some of Massine's best work, however, has lately enjoyed a revival; recently, the Paris Ballet staged a production of Manuel de Falla's "The Three-Cornered Hat (El Sombrero de Tres Picos)", with Massine's original 1919 choreography and Pablo Picasso's sets for the 1919 production. This revival of the ballet was issued in 2005 on the DVD "Picasso and Dance".

Massine's first original work of choreography was the innovative Parade (1917) with a libretto by Jean Cocteau, music by Erik Satie and decor by Pablo Picasso. Later on his set designers included Matisse, Salvador Dalí and Chagall. He went on to a hugely successful career as an international dancer and choreographer and while his private life remained tempestuous with four marriages and many affairs, his professional career seems to have been totally happy and satisfying for him.

Leonide Massine, dancer and choreographer was born in Moscow in 1895 the son of a soprano & a musician from the Bolshoi Theatre chorus. He studied acting & dance from the age of 8 at Moscow's Imperial Theatre School. He was 19 when he was spotted by Diaghilev and recruited as the principal dancer in the Ballets Russes to replace the recently married Nijinsky. Although many said that as a person he was distant and unemotional, when on stage (or film) he showed a livliness and an ability for the understanding and expressing of strong emotions and tremendous humour.