Amalia Brugnoli

Amalia Brugnoli (1803–1892) was an Italian ballerina. Brugnoli is said to have been the first dancer to have used the pointe technique when in 1823, she performed on full pointe in Armand Vestris' La Fée et le Chevalier in Vienna.

Biography Born in Milan on February 4, 1803, Brugnoli was the daughter of the dancers Paolo and Giuseppa Brugnoli. After training at La Scala's ballet academy, she partnered Armand Vestris, dancing with him in his La Fée et le Chevalier (The Fairy and the Knight) which was staged in Vienna in 1822.

In 1828, while performing at the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, she met the dancer and choreographer Paolo Samengo whom she married and adopted as her dancing partner. In 1832, she appeared with him at the King's Theatre, London where her pointwork was highly acclaimed.