Jeanne Brabants
Baroness Jeanne Brabants | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Jeanne Brabants (right, in black dress) in 2001 | |
| Born | Jeanne Brabants 25 January 1920 |
| Died | 2 January 2014 (aged 93) Antwerp, Belgium |
| Occupation(s) | Dancer, choreographer, teacher |
| Years active | 1930s–1984 |
Jeanne, Baroness Brabants (25 January 1920 – 2 January 2014) was a Belgian dancer, choreographer and teacher. She is known as "the woman who taught Flanders to dance professionally".[1]
Early life
[edit]Brabants was born in Antwerp. She learned much about ballet in her younger days in London under Ninette de Valois.[2] She practiced modern dance with Lea Daan, Kurt Jooss and Sigurd Leeder.
Professional life
[edit]She founded the Brabant Ballet School with her father in 1941. During the Second World War, she founded the Dance Ensemble of the Brabant Sisters with her sisters.[3] This ballet school was incorporated into the Royal Flemish Opera in 1951-1952 under her impetus.[4]
Establishment of Royal Ballet School
[edit]In 1951, she established the Ballet School of the Royal Flemish Opera within the Royal Flemish Opera. In 1964, the Ballet School of the Royal Flemish Opera became the Stedelijk Instituut voor Ballet (SIB), now the internationally renowned Royal Ballet School in Antwerp. [5] Jeanne Brabants was the director. From the onwards of 1990s, it is an internationally renowned institution which provides a complete professional dance training for young people from 8 to 18 years of age. [6]
Formation of the Royal Ballet of Flanders
[edit]Brabants designed some 200 choreographies, worked with internationally recognized people and achieved numerous international awards.[7] She formed the Royal Ballet of Flanders in 1969.[8] Making its debut with Prometheus, the "Flanders Ballet" repertoire included contemporary works choreographed by her and its chief choreographer Andre Leclair. This included not only works by several of the most prominent contemporary figures (Jiri Kylian, John Butler, Maurice Bejart, Hans van Manen) but also classic pieces by the likes of Mikhail Fokine, George Balanchine, Frederick Ashton and Kurt Jooss, as well as numerous ‘home-grown’ creations (by, for example, Jeanne Brabants, Andre Leclair, Aime de Figniere, Marc Bogaerts etc.).[1] Formation of Royal Ballet of Flanders made ballet, which was for a long time closely linked with opera, become autonomous.[9] Leading the Ballet of Flanders until 1984, she created choreographies including Dialoog, Cantus Firmus, Ode and Grand Hôtel.[10]
Retirement
[edit]When she retired from the Ballet of Flanders, she started an association called Youth and Dance, another association for professional dancers and a dance group, Danza Antiqua, which recreated Renaissance and baroque dances. She also continued to fight for the rights of dancers.[11]
Jeanne Brabants died on 2 January 2014, aged 93, in her hometown of Antwerp.[12]
References
[edit]- ^ a b The Low countries : arts and society in Flanders and the Netherlands ; a yearbook 1996-97. ISBN 9789070831967.
- ^ understanding ballet. 1978. p. 255.
- ^ "Jeanne Brabants".
- ^ "Dansicoon Jeanne Brabants | Letterenhuis". letterenhuis.be (in Dutch).
- ^ "The Ballet School of the Royal Flemish Opera becomes the Municipal Institute for Ballet". Royal Ballet School Antwerp. Retrieved 26 February 2025.
- ^ "Koninklijke balletschool Antwerpen". www.koninklijkeballetschool.be.
- ^ Metdepenninghen, Erna. "Biography of Jeanne Brabants". dbnl.org (in Dutch). DBNL. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
- ^ Craine, Debra; Mackrell, Judith (2010). The Oxford dictionary of dance. Oxford paperback reference (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxford university press. ISBN 978-0-19-956344-9.
- ^ Belgium : country study guide. Washington D.C. : International Business Publications. 2003. p. 92. ISBN 9780739792858. Retrieved 26 February 2025.
- ^ "Jeanne Brabants - Opera Ballet Vlaanderen". Opera Ballet Vlaanderen - Discover our programme (in Dutch).
- ^ World ballet and dance : an international year book. 1990-91. ISBN 1852730277.
- ^ "Danslegende Jeanne Brabants overleden". knack.be (in Dutch). Knack. 2 January 2014. Archived from the original on 8 January 2014. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
