Merle Park

Merle Park
Born	Merle Florence Park 1937 Salisbury, Rhodesia (now Harare, Zimbabwe)
Occupation	Ballet dancer

Dame Merle Florence Park, DBE (b. 1937, Salisbury, Rhodesia (now Harare, Zimbabwe)) was a prima ballerina. She joined the Royal Ballet in 1954 and became a soloist in 1958. At the age of 19 she danced the role of "The Milkmaid" in Façade in the Royal Opera House Company's Silver Jubilee gala on 6 May 1956.^[1] Her performance was admired for its "brilliance of execution and virtuoso technique".^[1] She was then chosen as one of the three soloists for the November 1959 première of the Ashton/Nureyev production of La Bayadère.

Her first full-length roles were Swanhilda in Coppélia and Lise in La Fille Mal Gardée. She created the role of Clara, partnered by Rudolf Nureyev, in The Nutcracker for the Royal Ballet in 1963, which was her breakthrough. A 1968 performance was filmed and widely viewed. Critics claimed that her Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) was the best of her generation.^[1] She gave more performances of Giselle than any other Royal Ballet artiste. After Mikhail Baryshnikov's defection in 1975, he accompanied Park in performances of Romeo and Juliet and Swan Lake.

In 1977, she was one of the dancers who performed along with Freddie Mercury at a charity gala which included a performance of Bohemian Rhapsody on behalf of the City of Westminster Society for Mentally Handicapped Children. During her career, Park's partners included Rudolf Nureyev, Anthony Dowell, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and David Wall.^{[citation needed]}

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Fowler, Jim (4 November 1997). "Merle Park". Ballet Magazine. http://www.ballet.co.uk/nov97/legend_jf_merle_park.htm. Retrieved 2008-11-05. 

• The Ballerina Gallery bio
• Merle Park autobiography site

Persondata
Name	Park, Merle
Alternative names	Park, Merle Florence
Short description	British prima ballerina
Date of birth	1937
Place of birth	Salisbury, Rhodesia (now Harare, Zimbabwe)
Date of death
Place of death