sir december october british ballet dancer choreographer artistic director london principal choreographer death earlier served director ballet berlin associate director artistic associate houston ballet family background ballet music determined early age dancer director accepted student member company late 1940s built successful career dancer plagued stage abandoned twenties worked entirely choreographer created length act pieces addition work ballet companies active television musicals non musical drama opera mainly associated frequently considered outsider felt driven work companies career choreographer creations ballet ballet include frequently revived works life career early years born scotland youngest surviving children time time cook wife née father served army world war suffered permanent physical mental damage search work moved family wife home town norfolk attending local primary school kenneth studied won scholarship great target german air raids second world war school evacuated introduced ballet local dance teacher lessons scottish dancing tap dancing took ballet immediately mother died caused acute lasting distress father distant figure boy close family relationship elder sister times suggests feeling outsider displayed roots childhood grammar school returned found new ballet teacher help aged secured admission later saw performances given new theatre london dancer appointed chief executive garden end war assignment establish permanent opera ballet companies house set building opera company scratch persuaded garden main base ballet company student appeared production sleeping beauty reopened opera house non dancing extra later promoted small dancing role main company resident garden established smaller ensemble perform wells act training ground young dancers april founder member quickly progress cast principal choreographer leading role new ballet nobles october success piece encouraged revive les rendezvous initially corps ballet work unexpectedly promoted male lead injuries eligible company biographer comments able notice rare ability remember reproduce steps dancer piece appeared promoted senior garden company start season touring europe dancing act sleeping beauty company opening gala new_york october new role created great admirer ballet children corner followed professor lady fool despite rise company unhappy performer suffered severe stage leading roles ordeal gave months leave absence spent time dancing friend small group little away spotlight thames dancer moved choreography concluded follow course returned work confidence dancer somewhat restored took new set response ballet workshops group choreographed ballet given february received year followed small scale work introduced outsider character case female clown attends ball host falls love loses mask attractive eclectic choice music evidenced early works danced jazz composed second music strength workshop successes commissioned year old create ballet performance wells music produced january designs collaborated extensively years counts early influences said learned ballet times commented piece clear powerful talent arrived critic described piece display witty classical vocabulary remade creator knew cinema spoke movement language generation success concluded future lay choreography dancing fierce argument wanted continue capacities got way contract company slightly reduced salary purely choreographer appearances dancer performances ugly step sister alongside choreographer produced series act junior company choreographed based brothers garden created like worked television punch child television adaptation took leave absence spend months new_york working winter eve journey dramatic garden opera company staged ballet regarded critics best disappointing production generation entire evening works presented june new ballet given quadruple bill house birds work menacing echoes war oppression won praise territory seldom explored ballet critic times admitted dramatic impact strong glad ends work marked beginning association muse subsequent company granted royal charter known royal ballet smaller company based wells called late 1950s choreographed musicals stage world paul cinema invitation shown december probably controversial ballet act work rape interpreted provoked time mixed reactions press audience works early 1960s rite spring selected unknown junior dancer dance lead role chosen maiden dances death primitive ritual dance dancers described singular signal triumph performance judged brilliantly british ballet memorable performances times commented original attempt rite waiting choreographer work stage successful version date mid-1960s immensely successful strained relations management board turned proposal create ballet music der song earth decision grounds score unsuitable use ballet charge ballet invited create work huge success months taken piece length act ballet romeo juliet score choreographed insistence gala premiere danced decision commercial artistic reasons internationally known stars guaranteed house premium prices huge publicity words chosen dancers felt betrayed berlin disillusioned accepted invitation berlin run ballet company describes unhappy experience garden suspected favouring opera expense ballet discovered berlin house doubt ballet given distinctly lower priority speak german reduced enjoyment watching films great theatre limited generally everyday life taken colleagues including moved away course nearly years charge increasingly isolated time managerial creative role strain affected physical mental health smoked drank heavily suffered minor stroke berlin company created seven nobles act version sleeping beauty swan lake critic considers finest work berlin director artistic director stepped retired somewhat reluctantly retired year wanted wholesale change management coincide departure opera arranged joint ballet secured directors joint succeeded hall post instead moving run field run junior company found split left months director ballet milan awkward position widely known forced resented company morale lowered announcement field party ballet companies merge numerous job losses managerial post berlin felt creative work suffered seven year term expansion act version length work period divided opinion receiving fiercely adverse reviews ones ballet elite requiem immediately successful regularly revived dedicated memory died suddenly premiered song earth board thought chosen music requiem inappropriate ballet work given garden age hitherto unmarried enigmatic personal life married year old australian painter writer comments marriage saved physically mentally gave stability private life resolved confused sexuality daughter marriage royal ballet principal choreographer seven years director resigned wishing concentrate choreography succeeded artistic director background avant garde took post principal choreographer fourth length ballet dark work portraying austrian young mistress comments scenarios new act featured similarly dark themes disturbed family brother sisters asylum playground valley shadows included scenes nazi concentration camp version familiar audiences opera depict brutal fate lighter fin piano depicts way life 1930s soon shattered second world war described crisp requiem era 1980s ventured non theatre directing productions manchester theatre writing observer thought drama play failed spring fully life guardian praised immensely detailed atmospheric production second piece remaining chief choreographer associate director company staged new works wild boy requiem time music romeo juliet created new production sleeping beauty despite heart attack continued work intensely new ballet garden years new version prince company found original version satisfactory neglected composer lifetime thought piece successfully reworked cuts score estate refused allow alterations reverted classical ballet piece creating fairy tale work far accustomed style result judged best works marked emergence year old picked dance young heroine principal dancer joined final important muse created inspired sisters male leading character ballet tree died heart attack backstage performance general director announced death stage performance asked audience rise bow heads leave theatre silence night junior company presenting romeo juliet birmingham nearly finished work dances new production opened theatre weeks later family friends audience honours awards received honorary degrees awards include evening standard ballet award theatre managers ballet award posthumously award best new dance production tree tony award best choreography choreography length shorter works sources performance database website
Kenneth MacMillan