The Life and Ballets of Lev Ivanov: Choreographer of The Nutcracker and Swan Lake - Tapa dura

At last! A book that throws some light on the enigma of classical ballet, Lev Ivanov. Professor Roland John Wiley has, through incredibly detailed and extensive research in Russia, managed to piece together a much clearer picture of this master choreographer's life and achievements than has ever been available before. For this, I, for one, am hugely grateful ... the book is very easy to read and well divided into clear cut sections ... superb book ... It is a work which will ensure that Lev Ivanov's life and achievements will nolonger be overlooked or forgotten by present and future generations. It is a "must" for all who really care about classical ballet. (Peter Wright, The Dancing Times, June 1997)

Professor Roland John Wiley has, through incredibly detailed and extensive research in Russia, managed to piece together a much clearer picture of this master choreographer's life and achievements than has ever been available before ... the book is very easy to read and well divided into clear cut sections ... there are fascinating accounts of his days at ballet school and graduation into the Imperial Ballet at the Maryinsky Theatre ... superb book ... It is a "must" for all who really care about classical ballet. (Peter Wright, The Dancing Times, June 1997)

The Life and Works of Lev Ivanov is the first book-length study in any language about this Russian artist - Marius Petipa's colleague and Tchaikovsky's collaborator - who is widely celebrated and yet virtually unknown. It follows Ivanov from his infancy in a St Petersburg foundling home through his training in the Imperial Theatre School and his celebrity marriage, to a career as a dancer, régisseur, and choreographer in the St Petersburg Imperial Ballet. Ivanov's artistic world is described, as is his legacy - some dozen works, including Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, and the famous dances from Prince Igor - which inspired Mikhail Fokine in the next generation. The book is richly documented, including the first complete publication of Ivanov's memoirs, and hundreds of citations, many published here for the first time, from state documents, reminiscences, and criticism.