Marie Miller

Marie Miller (8 April 177018 April 1833), or Marie-Élisabeth-Anne Houbert, known professionally as Mlle Miller and later Madame Gardel, was an 18th-century French ballet dancer at the Opéra de Paris and the wife of Pierre Gardel.

Early life Marie-Elisabeth-Anne Houbert was born on 8 April 1770 in Auxonne, France. Marie's father was a musician in the Royal Artillery Corps (French: Corps Royal de l'Artillerie) and died when she was a young girl.

Entertainment life Her mother's second husband, Jean-Gaspard Krasinski, nicknamed "Miller", was a Polish composer and flautist who had a large impact on Marie's life.

In Antonio Sacchini's opera Dardanus, Mademoiselle Miller made her debut in front of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette at the Château de Fontainebleau on 20 and 27 October 1785. By April 1786, Marie, at the age of 16, was being paid 1,500 livres, with an additional gratuity of the same amount.

Marie quickly earned the rank of première danseuse before the French Revolution. Shortly afterward, the dancer succeeded Marie-Madeleine Guimard, who retired around 1789. That same year, she was cast in one of the earliest full-length ballets by the Opéra's ballet master titled Psyché. The young Houbert performed in the title role of "Psyché" in its premiere at the Opéra on 14 December 1790.

In 1793, Mlle Miller visited King's Theatre in London for a guest performance. After his first wife, Anne Jacqueline Coulon, died, the widow decided to remarry. She continued to perform in all of Pierre's ballet compositions.

In Gardel's 1802 Paul et Virginie, she played a notable role as "Virginie". She was cast in Le triomphe du mois de Mars, ou le Berceau d'Achille on 27 March 1811. Mme Gardel appeared as "August (Aout)" with Albert (June) and Mlle Bigottini (July).

In 1816, Mme Gardel concluded a stage career that spanned nearly thirty years. Her husband Pierre lived until 1840.