Frederick Ashton
Born in Ecuador, raised in Peru, Frederick Ashton grew up to define the training and style of British ballet. Ashton was born in 1904 in Ecuador where his father was a diplomat. When Ashton went to school in England as a teenager, he spoke English with a Spanish accent. He loved ballet, but his late start at dance lessons led his teachers to encourage him to become a choreographer instead. His first dance piece was created in 1926. Moving between London and Paris over the next eight years, Ashton choreographed over 20 ballets. He came to the United States in 1934 to choreograph the landmark production of Gertrude Stein’s Four Saints in Three Acts with music by Virgil Thomson. On his return to England, he became the resident choreographer of the Vic-Wells Ballet, later named the Sadler’s Wells Ballet, and then in 1956, the Royal Ballet. Ashton’s career would remain centered at the Royal Ballet, including leading the company from 1963 to 1970. At the same time, Ashton created ballets for the New York City Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, and La Scala, amongst others. Ashton’s ballets were significant not only for an easy accessibility through humor, but also for large-scale works of heightened human emotion. A number of ballets were created specifically for Margot Fonteyn, as well as for Rudolf Nureyev, and even, in 1980, for Mikhail Baryshnikov. Ashton choreographed over 100 ballets, operas, musical comedies, and films. The Turning Point (1977) featured Ashton’s Etude. Frederick Ashton was knighted by Queen Elizabeth, whom he once taught how to dance the tango. Ashton died in 1988.
