The Coconino sun., 1907-01-12
FAMOUS BALLET DANGERS.
Stories of La Taglioni, Fanny ElssIer
 and Lola Montex.

and Lola Montez.
 It has been asserted that the grand ballet died when the famous Taglioni retired in 1S45. At any rate, the ballet today is chiefly spectacle of dress and colored limellght Except for a very few performers. dancing as high art has vanished.
 There is no one now to set beside La Taglon!, who was the queen of the stage. Balzac introduced her into his novels. Even Thackeray condescended to notice her and declared enthusias- tically in "The Newcomes" that the "young men of the day will never see anything so graceful as TaglionI in La Sylphide'" At that time she was the rage Stagecoaches and great coats were named after her.
 La Taglioni owed her charm to a wonderful lightness and grace. Her style was rather ideal than realistic and voluptuous, as was then the vogue. The hideous ballet skirt of today she never wore. but skirt that reached nearly to her ankles. It was one of the principles of her father, who taught her all she learned of the art, that the dancer should be modest in dress. in movement and in expression.
 Another famous master, who called himself "Ie Dieu de la Danse," always told his pupils to use all the coquetry they could.
 Vestris, who founded the famous vestris family. was an eighteenth cen tury celebrity and quite remarkably conceited even for dancer. 'There are but three great men alive" he used to say, myself the Prussian Fred erick and Voltaire." Qt is interesting to compare Southey's remark that n male dancer deserves to be ham, strung) That profession of which he was so proud is indeed an arduous one. vestris used to practice for about six hours a day. A dancer must be ex- tremely strong and supple.
 A curious story is told about Fanny Elssler. German dancer with coal DldNh huhy Wbith hhhoNihhtS tht treme muscular strength dancer re- quires. She was crossing to America when she entered her cabin one day and discovered thief abstraciing inc jewel case which she kept hidden un der her pillow. Before he could attack her she planted her foot full in his chest and killed him on tic spot.
 It Is curious that no Engllshwoman has ever achieved supreme success as a dancer. IL Is possible. as foreigners assert, that they lack the dramatic gift. 1t is certain that lifelong devotion and arduons apprenticeship are essen. tial to any expression through the me dium of dancing. The rats the be- ginners at the Paris Opera, are arti- cled for five years, and then, unless they have danced from their cradle, they cannot hope to attain the first rank
 Another quality essential to the great dancer is infinite patience. The only English dancer who ever gave promise of attaining the front rank failed in this respect Lola MonteZ was the somewhat foreign name she had taken. She lost her temper one day with the manager at rehearsal and expressed her feelings so dramatically as to break an umbrella over his head. Man agers will endure much for arts sake. but this was too much.
 Carlotta Grisl is another famous name of the old opera. It was she who first introduced the polka into England-a Bohemian dance that came to stay. It was for her, too, that Heine, Gautler and Adolphe Adam collaborated in writing "Giselle."
 There were score more famous names that were familiar words in those days. Of the twelve leading dancers engaged at the Kings theater In 1924 for a two months season five were a sufficient attraction to receive more than fl.000 each.-London Mail