José Neglia (April 2, 1929 – October 10, 1971) was a notable Argentine ballerino, who perhaps more than any other figure, helped popularize the classical ballet in his country.^[1]

Life and work[link]

Neglia was born in Buenos Aires to an Italian Argentine family, in 1929. He took an early interest in the ballet, and at age 12, began taking lessons at the National Conservatory of Music and Scenic Arts, and later from Michel Borowski, a well-known local figure in the ballet. Neglia was accepted into the dance school of the Colón Theatre, the nation's premier opera house, was made part of the opera house's ballet company and was eventually named its primo ballerino.^[2]

Leading the ballet company, he became well known during the 1950s and '60s for his performances with his female counterpart in the company, Norma Fontenla. He received nuemrous distinctions at home and abroad, including the Vaslav Nijinsky Prize from the International Dance Association, and the gold medal at the 6th International Festival of Dance, both in Paris, in 1968. Among his many leading roles, some of the most notable were in Maurice Ravel's Boléro, as Laertes in Hamlet, and in the title roles in Orpheus and Romeo and Juliet. Russian ballet virtuoso Rudolph Nureyev chose the Colón Theatre for his 1971 season of Peter Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker, for which he joined the ballet company led by Fontenla and Neglia. The success of the program was followed by a series of performances by Nureyev with the company for Argentine television, as well.^[3]

The nine members of the ballet company boarded a flight at Jorge Newbery Airfield on October 10, 1971, en route to Trelew, a city in Patagonia where they were scheduled to perform. Shortly after takeoff, however, the twin-engine plane stalled, nose-diving into the Río de la Plata and killing all aboard. Their remains lay in state at the Colón, and on the first anniversary of the tragedy, a monument in their honor was unveiled on Lavalle Plaza, near the opera house.^[4]

References[link]

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Norma Fontenla

Norma Fontenla (June 28, 1930 - October 10, 1971) was an Argentine prima ballerina.

Life and work[link]

Fontenla was born in 1930, and while still a child, began attending the National Conservatory of Music and Scenic Art, in Buenos Aires. She was later accepted into the dance school of the Colón Theatre, the nation's premier opera house. Fontenla was made part of the opera house's ballet company and was eventually named its prima ballerina.^[1]

She joined the Rio de Janeiro Ballet in the early 1960s, and with them made her first European tours. Returning to Buenos Aires, she led the Colón Theatre Ballet in works such as Frederic Chopin's Les Sylphides, Adolphe Adam's Giselle, Léo Delibes' Coppelia, and as Odette in Peter Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake. Her 1967 performance in Giselle was notable also for her collaboration with Margot Fonteyn and Rudolph Nureyev.^[1]

Fontenla performed in Paris in 1968 and in Santiago, Chile in 1969, where she opened the Municipal Theater's ballet season that year. She organized a tour of opera houses in the Argentine hinterland in 1970, and was invited to direct the ballet company in Milan's renowned La Scala.^[2] Her previous collaboration with Nureyev earned the Colón Theatre his choosing that venue to perform Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker for the 1971 season. The success of the program was followed by a series of performances by Nureyev for Argentine television, alongside Fontenla and her primo ballerino, José Neglia.^[1]

Fontenla, Neglia and seven other members of the ballet company boarded a flight at Jorge Newbery Airfield on October 10, 1971, en route to Trelew, a city in Patagonia where they were scheduled to perform. Shortly after takeoff, however, the twin-engine plane stalled, nose-diving into the Río de la Plata and killing all aboard. Their remains lay in state at the Colón, and on the first anniversary of the tragedy, a monument in their honor was unveiled on Lavalle Plaza (within steps of the opera house).^[2]

References[link]

v t e Ballet General information ballets companies glossary history music timeline Ballet terminology Ballet d'action Barre Ballet blanc Comic ballet Contemporary ballet Ballets de cour Demi-soloist Divertissement Narrative ballet Neoclassical ballet Opéra-ballet Pas de deux Pas de quatre Pas de trois Pièce d'occasion Pointe shoes Romantic ballet Turnout Tutu Variation Ballet by genre character classical contemporary neoclassical Ballet by region British French Italian Russian Dancers American British French Russian Technique Balanchine Bournonville Cecchetti Royal Academy Vaganova Ballet apparel dance belt leotard pointe shoes slippers tights tutu unitard Schools The National Ballet School of Canada Stuttgart Ballet Cuban National Ballet School Elmhurst School for Dance English National Ballet School Moscow State Academy of Choreography Royal Ballet School School of American Ballet La Scala Theatre Ballet School Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet Royal Winnipeg Ballet Companies American Ballet Theatre Anaheim Ballet Atlanta Ballet Ballet Manila Ballet Philippines Barcelona Ballet Berlin State Ballet Birmingham Royal Ballet Bolshoi Ballet Boston Ballet Cairo Opera Ballet Company Cape Town City Ballet Carolina Ballet Cincinnati Ballet Cuban National Ballet Dayton Ballet Donetsk Ballet Dutch National Ballet English National Ballet Finnish National Ballet Georgian National Ballet Greek National Opera Guangzhou Ballet Hamburg Ballet Hong Kong Ballet Houston Ballet Iaşi Romanian National Opera Iranian National Ballet Company Joffrey Ballet K-ballet Kiev Ballet Korea National Ballet Company La Scala Theatre Ballet Les Ballets de Monte Carlo Les Grands Ballets Canadiens Los Angeles Ballet Mariinsky Ballet Moldova National Opera Ballet National Ballet of Canada National Ballet of China National Ballet Theater of Puerto Rico National Opera and Ballet National Theatre Munich New Jersey Ballet New York City Ballet Norwegian National Opera and Ballet Oklahoma City Ballet Oregon Ballet Theatre Pacific Northwest Ballet Paris Opera Ballet Philippine Ballet Theatre Polish National Ballet Queensland Ballet Royal Danish Ballet Royal New Zealand Ballet Royal Swedish Ballet Royal Winnipeg Ballet San Francisco Ballet Scottish Ballet Shanghai Ballet Company Spanish National Dance Company Stuttgart Ballet The Australian Ballet The Royal Ballet Tokyo Ballet Tulsa Ballet Universal Ballet West Australian Ballet Ballet portal Did you know? today's news today's article today's biography today's picture recent news 2009 2008