The Paris Opera and the world of ballet bid farewell to one of the most influential dancers of our time. French Pierre Lacotte died at the age of 91leaving a legacy of all his great contributions on stage and in modern dance.
It was the French Minister of Culture, Rima Abdul Malak, who confirmed the sad news and sent a farewell message to the choreographer: “We will keep the memory of a tireless magician of steps, who kept his childhood dreams alive until he was 91“.
For its part, the Paris Opera, the dancer’s second home, also wanted to pay homage to him and bid him farewell: “Pierre Lacotte marked the history of dance”. The company also pointed out that two years ago, in 2021, it offered a final ballet within its walls, The Red and the Black, to pay homage to the Theater “which he always considered his true home”.
José Martínez, current director of dance at the Paris Opera, dedicated a last word of farewell to him: “Classical ballet owes a lot to this master of dance. We are the custodians of a precious heritage that we must preserve for future generations.
“Marked the history of dance thanks to his work to rediscover the romantic repertoire. His creations for the Teatro dell’Opera in Rome are memorable”, they recall from the Opera di Roma.
The impeccable career of Pierre Lacotte
Pierre Lacotte (born in 1932), ballet dancer, teacher and choreographer, began his studies at the Paris Opera School in 1942 and in 1946 he joined the company’s ballet corps. From there, he took a big leap to become a principal dancer years later.
She also made a name for herself on the small screen with her choreography La Nuit est une Sorcière, recorded and broadcast on Belgian television. Already in 1956 fHe founded his own ballet company, the Ballet de la Tour Eiffel..
In 1971, he was appointed ballet master of the Paris Opera thanks, in large part, to one of his greatest contributions to the industry of this genre of dance; as in ballet reconstruction The sylphwhich had been created by Filippo Taglioni for his daughter Marie, in 1832, and has been lost.