Darcey Bussell
Darcey Bussell CBE | |
|---|---|
 Darcey Bussell at a curtain call after a performance of Theme and Variations | |
| Born | April 27, 1969 London |
| Occupation | Ballet dancer |
| Spouse | Angus Forbes |
| Children | Phoebe and Zoe |
| Parent(s) | John Crittle and wife Andrea (divorced) Adopted by Philip Bussell when he married Andrea |
Darcey Bussell CBE (born Darcey Crittle on 27 April 1969 in London) is a retired English ballerina.
Biography
Darcey was born to John Crittle, an English based Australian businessman and his English wife Andrea.[1] After the couple divorced when Darcey was three, her mother remarried and Darcy was adopted by her mother's new husband, Australian dentist Philip Bussell. The family spent some time in Australia where Darcey attended school before they returned to London for Darcey to be educated at the Fox Primary School.
Dancing career
After studying at the Arts Educational School, Bussell began ballet seriously only at the age of 13 when she moved to White Lodge in the Royal Ballet School. After graduating in 1985, she stayed at the school for two further years, appearing in minor productions at Covent Garden, before joining Sadler's Wells Royal Ballet in 1987.
While she was still at school, the choreographer Kenneth MacMillan had noticed her talent, and in 1988 he gave her the leading role in his ballet The Prince of the Pagodas to Benjamin Britten's music, causing her to move to The Royal Ballet. A year later, in December 1989, on the opening night of the show, she was promoted to Principal, at the time the youngest ballerina to be given this honour.
Her many roles include Masha in Winter Dreams and Princess Rose in The Prince of the Pagodas, both choreographed by MacMillan, as well as Princess Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty, Odette/Odile in Swan Lake, Nikiya and Gamzatti in La Bayadère, the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker, Manon in Manon, and Giselle in Giselle.
She guest starred in the popular BBC1 comedy The Vicar of Dibley as herself.
In 2006 she announced her retirement as a principal dancer at the Royal Ballet, though stayed with the company as "guest principal artist".
She retired from ballet on 8 June 2007 with a performance of MacMillan's Song of the Earth (music Gustav Mahler). It was performed at the Royal Opera House in London, and at the end of the piece she was met with a glorious standing ovation. It was also broadcast live on BBC Two.[2]
Bussell has recently teamed up with Katherine Jenkins who have organised to stage a song and dance production to pay tribute to the stars which have inspired them[3] which include Madonna and Judy Garland.[4] With a £1 million budget, the show was launched in Manchester in November and is entitled Viva la Diva.[3] Bussell and Jenkins performed a segment of Viva la Diva before the Queen at the 79th Royal Variety Performance which was televised on December 9 2007.[5]
Personal life
Bussell has been married since 1997 to Angus Forbes, an Australian banker. The family presently live in Kensington with their two daughters; Phoebe, born 2001, and Zoe, born 2004. In 2008, the family will relocate to Sydney, Australia, to live a more eco-friendly life style.[1]
References
- ^ a b Darcey dances off to Oz as an eco-mum Sunday Times - December 23, 2007
- ^ An era ends in glittering glory — telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved December 10 2007.
- ^ a b See what they've been keeping under their hats — guardian.co.uk. Retrieved May 30, 2007.
- ^ I’ve got a story to tell, says Kath — icwales.icnetwork.co.uk. Retrieved October 19, 2007.
- ^ Royal Variety Performance — bbc.co.uk. Retrieved December 10 2007.
External links
- Darcey Bussell homepage
- Darcey Bussell fanpage
- The Ballerina Gallery - Darcey Bussell
- Artist Fletcher Sibthorp's Cork Street exhibition (Darcy Bussell features in images 6 and 7)