The Legat Saga - An Anecdotal Study of the Life and Times of Nicolas Legat - HARDBACK

It tells the tragic story of the brilliant Russian artist Nicolai Legat, caught up in the cataclysmic events of war and revolution

In pre-revolutionary years, Legat contributed significantly to the lyrical beauty of the Maryinsky dance style, achieving the highest honors as First Dancer, Ballet Master, Professor of the Class of Perfection, and Soloist to the Tzar

Leaving Russia in 1914, he danced in the music halls of Paris and London with his young partner, Nadine Nicolaeva, whom he subsequently married

Returning to Russia in 1915 he tried to re-establish himself as a choreographer, but during the troubled yeas of the new regime his task was rendered largely ineffectual by discord among fellow artists and economic severities

He eventually left the Soviet union in 1922

He practiced his art in London and Paris and eventually set up his own school in Colet Gardens, Kensington

He never achieved the acclaim his great talent merited, although he was greatly loved and revered by the brilliant dancers of the period who flocked to his studio

John Gregory's research reveals aspects and events previously unchronicled and gives descriptions of the essence of Legat's pure dance and his remarkable method of teaching

"The Legat Saga is a compelling biography that probes the mystique and exoticism of the Russian soul that inspired the fabulous art of Russian Ballet. Profusely illustrated with period photographs of all the famous dancers and ballerinas of the period" ~ Midwest Book Review