One hundred years ago, Anna Pavlova arrived in Australia with a company of dancers, ballet masters, dressers, musicians, managers, sets, costumes, luggage, pointe shoes — and even an aviary.
Her 1926 tour was gruelling, glamorous and expertly promoted. Audiences packed theatres, critics reached for superlatives, and crowds gathered at railway stations to catch sight of the woman billed as “The Greatest Dancer of All Time.”
But Pavlova’s visit was more than a celebrity event. Across Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and New Zealand, she brought ballet to audiences hungry for theatrical spectacle, and left a mark on young Australian dancers who would go on to shape the country’s own ballet history.
For Dance Australia, I looked back at Pavlova’s 1926 tour, the machinery that made it possible, the mythology surrounding her, and the complicated question of what her visit really meant for ballet in Australia.
You can read the full article here:
https://www.danceaustralia.com.au/artists/when-pavlova-came-to-australia