Royal Ballet, the principal British ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden Covent Garden (kŭv`ənt)
..... Click the link for more information. , London. It is noted for lavish dramatic productions, a superbly disciplined corps de ballet, and brilliant performances from its principals. Granted a royal charter in 1956, the company was formed from the Sadler's Wells Ballet, which had its origins in the Academy of Choreographic Art, founded by Dame Ninette de Valois Valois, Dame Ninette de (văl`wä), 1898–2001, English ballet director, b. County Wicklow, Ireland.
..... Click the link for more information. in 1926. Dancers from the academy achieved renown in the 1930s as the Vic-Wells Ballet, performing at the Old Vic Old Vic, London repertory company and theater. The Old Vic theater opened in 1818 as the Coburg, and was renamed the Royal Victoria in 1833, soon familiarized to the Old Vic.
..... Click the link for more information. and Sadler's Wells theaters.

The company's principal ballerina was Dame Alicia Markova Markova, Dame Alicia (märkō`vä), 1910–2004, English ballerina. Her original name was Lilian Alicia Marks.
..... Click the link for more information. ; when she left in 1935, Margot Fonteyn Fonteyn, Dame Margot (fŏntān`), 1919–91, English ballerina.
..... Click the link for more information. , who had made her debut that year at age 15, was trained to become prima ballerina, a rank she held until she became guest artist with the company in 1959. Many other celebrated dancers developed with the Royal Ballet, as well as such choreographers as Sir Frederick Ashton Ashton, Sir Frederick, 1904–88, British choreographer and dancer, b. Guayaquil, Ecuador. He grew up in Peru and was drawn to dance after seeing (1917) a performance by Anna Pavlova there.
..... Click the link for more information. , Antony Tudor Tudor, Antony, 1909–87, English choreographer and dancer. Tudor went to the United States at the invitation of the Ballet Theatre, New York City (1939); he danced leading roles and created ballets for several English and American companies and was later the
..... Click the link for more information. , Kenneth MacMillan, and John Cranko.

The company toured during World War II, then settled in the Royal Opera House in 1946. De Valois directed the company for more than 35 years, retiring in 1963. She was succeeded by Ashton in 1964 and MacMillan in 1970. In 1986, Sir Anthony Dowell became the company's director. He was succeeded by Ross Stretton, the former director of the Australian Ballet and first non-Briton in the post (2001–2), and Monica Mason (2002–).

The Sadler's Wells Theatre Ballet (after 1956, the Touring Company of the Royal Ballet) was founded in 1946 by de Valois after the Sadler's Wells Ballet moved to the Royal Opera House. Based at Sadler's Wells Theatre (1946–55, 1970–90) and the Royal Opera House (1955–70), it traveled widely abroad after 1949. Renamed the Sadler's Wells Royal Ballet in 1977, it moved to Birmingham as the Birmingham Royal Ballet in 1990 and became independent of the Royal Opera House in 1997.

Bibliography

See study by A. Bland (1981).

Royal Ballet

English ballet company and school. In 1931 Ninette de Valois and Lilian Baylis organized the Vic-Wells Ballet, naming it for the two theatres (Old Vic and Sadler's Wells) where it performed. In the 1940s the group was called the Sadler's Wells Ballet, after its theatre; it moved to Covent Garden in 1946. Alicia Markova, Margot Fonteyn, and Robert Helpmann were among the company's early members. By the 1950s the Sadler's Wells Ballet had expanded to include its own school and a separate touring company; in 1956 it received a royal charter and was renamed the Royal Ballet. Dancers such as Rudolf Nureyev and choreographers such as Frederick Ashton, Kenneth MacMillan, and Bronislava Nijinska were associated with the company.