Marie Petipa

Marie Mariusovna Petipa (; – 16 January 1930) was a Russian ballerina. She was born in St. Petersburg and was the daughter of Marius Petipa (under whom she studied) and Maria Petipa.

Life and career Her debut was at the Mariinsky Theatre in 1875 in Le Dahlia bleu and her dancing career, mainly in the character dance repertoire, lasted until 1907, although she performed on rare occasions through 1911. She created the roles of the Lilac Fairy in The Sleeping Beauty in 1890, Princess Mlada in the opera-ballet by Rimsky Korsakov in 1892 and a Bacchante in The Seasons in 1900.

At the height of her career, Petipa was one of the most well-known ballerinas in St. Petersburg. Her portraits were drawn by the well-known artists (a portrait of her by Konstantin Makovsky has survived), her private life was discussed in the newspapers, and her 25th career anniversary in 1901 was widely celebrated in St. Petersburg. Vlas Doroshevich wrote a lengthy article on this occasion titled Goddess of Joy and Merriment . Petipa went on many tours abroad and was awarded Ordre des Palmes Académiques in France.

She was in a civil marriage with the dancer Sergei Legat (1875–1905), who was much younger than her. Petipa left the stage two years after her husband committed suicide. Nevertheless, the Directorate of the Academic Theaters petitioned to grant Petipa a pension in 1924. According to the same sources, Petipa emigrated to Paris in 1926 where she had two strokes and died of impulsive insanity.