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BALLET by Tomislav Kuljiš |
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BALLET by Tomislav Kuljiš |
Unlike the dramatic and musical events, the ballet in Split had no tradition whatsoever. The first ballet performances date back to 1921 with a guest performance of the corps de ballet from Milan, Italy, led by the prima ballerina Norma Danielli. The whole performance was a part of the visiting Zagreb Opera Ensemble. The guest artists' performances preceded by this event were to be of a short duration, due to the fact that as early as the mid-thirties a ballet school was opened by Mila Katić, a Croatian ballerina educated in Vienna who was later to become an acknowledged teacher. This school gave the Croatian ballet a number of fine dancers. It was with the return of Ana Roje upon completing her education in Zagreb and London that the golden era of the ballet in both Split and Croatia commenced. Together with her partner and husband Oskar Harmoš, Ana Roje opened an internationally recognized ballet school. Both Ana Roje and Oskar Harmoš succeeded in earning international recognition and their unique art was acclaimed all over the world. Since that time the corps de ballet of the Croatian National Theatre in Split has been permanently active and so far they have performed the majority of standard ballet classics, as well as many pieces composed by Croatian composers, some of which have been produced for the very first time. |
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