Nijinsky - by Richard Buckle (Paperback)

About the Book

The intoxicating story of one of the greatest dancers in the history of ballet and the paradox of his profound genius and descent into madness.

Book Synopsis

The intoxicating story of one of the greatest dancers in the history of ballet and the paradox of his profound genius and descent into madness.

Vaslav Nijinsky stands alone as a dancer, interpretive artist, and choreographic pioneer. His breathtaking performances with the Ballet Russe took Western Europe by storm, and his avant-garde choreography for The Afternoon of the Faun and Rite of Spring caused riots in the streets. Both are now regarded as the foundation of modern dance. Through his liaison with the great impresario Diaghilev, he worked with the artistic elite of the time--Benois, Bakst, Debussy, Fokine, Karsavina, Pavlova, Stravinsky--and lived in an atmosphere of perpetual hysteria, glamour, and intrigue. When he married a Hungarian aristocrat, Diaghilev abruptly dismissed him from the Ballet Russe. Five years later, he was declared insane. The fabulous career of the greatest dancer who ever lived was over. Drawing on personal conversations with countless people who knew and worked with Nijinsky, including his sister and famed choreographer Bronislava Nijinska, Richard Buckle has written the definitive biography of Nijinsky, now back in print for the first time in more than forty years.

Review Quotes

Buckle has chosen the legendary dancer as his focus in a study encompassing the whole Diaghilev empire. We find an unobstructed view of this otherwise opaque man.

This book is the equivalent to a last opportunity to attend the golden age of the Russian Ballet. Buckle makes those golden pre-war summers live again.--Sacheverell Sitwell

This will be the definitive biography for decades.