Biography

Violette Verdy was born on December 1, 1933 in Pont-l'Abbé, Finistère, France. She was an actress and writer, known for Olivia (1951), Dream Ballerina (1950) and The Bell Telephone Hour (1959). She was married to Colin Clark. She died on February 8, 2016 in Bloomington, Indiana, USA.

It was during the making of Dream Ballerina (1950) that Nelly Armande Guillerm changed her name to Violette Verdy.

She was a star of the New York City Ballet who was regarded as one of the leading ballerinas of the 20th century. She is most closely linked with George Balanchine, with whom she worked from 1958 to 1976. The "Emeralds" section of his full-length production "Jewels" was created for her.

She was a professor of dance at Indiana University for 20 years.

She began her career in 1945 with Roland Petit's Ballets des Champs-Elysees. She joined the London Festival Ballet in 1954 and then American Ballet Theater, before joining the New York City Ballet. She served a brief tenure as the first female director of the Paris Opera Ballet.

He had a company of greyhounds and borzois. And, you know, I was a little French poodle. [on Balanchine's preference for tall, athletic-looking ballerinas]