Keith Mackintosh (born 4 October 1945) is a former principal ballet dancer and ballet master with Cape Town City Ballet.
Mackintosh was born in Cardiff, Wales and began full-time ballet training at the age of 18 after gaining a scholarship from the Buckinghamshire Education Committee. [1] He trained at the Arts Educational School in London for three years, during which he took roles in pantomimes, toured Hungary with West Side Story in 1965 and took part in the BBC's John Cranko production of Onegin in 1966. [1] He trained under Eve Pettinger, Errol Addison, Ben Stevenson and Beryl Grey in London. Prompted by the arrival of Rudolf Nureyev on the London scene, he travelled to New York to train with David Howard, Stanley Williams, Maggie Black and Valentina Pereyaslavec. [2] Mackintosh commented in 2017 that "Rudolf's charisma and technical brilliance not only changed negative perceptions about male dancers, he spurred me to higher achievements." [3]
He first visited South Africa in 1967, on David Poole's invitation, to debut as Prince Siegfried in Swan Lake. [4] He then joined the Iranian National Ballet for a year in 1968, before dancing in the inaugural performance of the Northern Dance Theatre. He was then invited to join the ballet of the Grande Theatre de Geneve by Alfonso Cata. He joined CAPAB Ballet as a principal dancer on 1 August 1971. He received South Africa's highest dance award, the Nederburg Award, in 1981. [3] He was appointed Ballet Master in 1986, but continued dancing until retiring in 1990. After his retirement he focused on audience development and education, founding the Male Development Training Programme for boys from disadvantaged communities. [4] Mackintosh also established the Keith Mackintosh Scholarship Fund which was integral in fundraising for the CTCB Endowment Trust. Mackintosh has guest taught in Finland, Sweden, The Netherlands, Germany, the UK and Monte Carlo. [4] He served on Cape Town City Ballet's board as the Artistic Coordinator and Director of Outreach until his retirement in 2017. [3]
Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev was a Soviet-born ballet dancer and choreographer. Nureyev is regarded by some as the greatest male ballet dancer of his generation.
American Ballet Theatre (ABT) is a classical ballet company based in New York City. Founded in 1939 by Lucia Chase and Richard Pleasant, it is recognized as one of the world's leading classical ballet companies. Through 2019, it had an annual eight-week season at the Metropolitan Opera House in the spring and a shorter season at the David H. Koch Theater in the fall; the company tours around the world the rest of the year. The company was scheduled to have a 5-week spring season at the MET preceded by a 2-week season at the Koch Theater beginning in 2020. ABT is the parent company of the American Ballet Theatre Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School, and was recognized as "America's National Ballet Company" in 2006 by the United States Congress.
Daria Klimentová is a Czech retired ballet dancer, ballet teacher and photographer. She spent most of her career as a lead principal dancer at English National Ballet. She is currently a teacher at the Royal Ballet Upper School.
Alessandra Ferri OMRI is an Italian prima ballerina. She danced with the Royal Ballet (1980–1984), American Ballet Theatre (1985–2007) and La Scala Theatre Ballet (1992–2007) and as an international guest artist, before temporally retiring on 10 August 2007, aged 44, then returning in 2013. She was eventually granted the rank of prima ballerina assoluta.
Daniel Rajna born 1968, is a South African ballet dancer. After gaining a BSc in applied mathematics at UCT, he trained at the UCT Ballet school, Cape Town. He joined the former CAPAB Ballet in 1990, before leaving in 1997 to join PACT Ballet in Pretoria. He returned to Cape Town in 1999 and was a principal dancer at the Cape Town City Ballet. He is known for his interpretation of dramatic ballets and his partnership with friend, Tracy Li. He and his wife Leanne Voysey, a former principal dancer with Cape Town City Ballet, have a son Finn. He is the son of composer Thomas Rajna. He has performed as a guest artist in Hong Kong, Zimbabwe, The United States, South Africa and Taiwan. They were also both invited to the 2004 International Ballet Festival of Miami. He retired in August 2007 after several performances of Camille. After retirement Rajna made a radical career change and after studying for three years, joined a civil consultancy as a dam designer. He continued his association with ballet and was asked back on occasion to coach members of the ballet company. In 2015 Rajna and Li were invited to come out of retirement to give two performances of Veronica Paeper's ballet, "Carmen" accompanied by the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra.
Phyllis Spira was a South African ballet dancer who began her career with the Royal Ballet in England. Upon returning to South Africa, she spent twenty-eight years as prima ballerina of CAPAB Ballet, a professional company in Cape Town named for the Cape Performing Arts Board. In 1984 she was named the first South African Prima Ballerina Assoluta.
The Cape Town City Ballet Company, formerly known as the CAPAB Ballet Company, is a dance company based in Cape Town, South Africa.
Elizabeth Triegaardt is a South African ballet dancer, now retired. She is professor emerita of the University of Cape Town School of Dance and an honorary executive director of the Cape Town City Ballet.
Dulcie Howes was a South African ballet dancer, teacher, choreographer, and company director. During her performing career, she was considered the prima ballerina assoluta of South African ballet. In 1934, she established the company that evolved into today's Cape Town City Ballet.
David Poole was a South African ballet dancer, choreographer, teacher, and company director. During his thirty-year association with dance companies in Cape Town, he had "a profound effect on ballet in South Africa. He is internationally recognised as a significant figure in the world of dance.
Eduard Greyling is a South African ballet dancer, now retired. After an illustrious career as a principal dancer with CAPAB Ballet in Cape Town, he became well known as a dance notator, teacher, journalist, and critic.
Paul Clement Hammond OAM was an Australian ballet dancer, teacher and choreographer.
The Maynardville Open-Air Theater is an outdoor theatre in Maynardville Park, Wynberg, Cape Town, South Africa. It seats 720 people and is known for its annual Shakespeare in the Park plays.
Thiago Soares is a Brazilian ballet dancer and choreographer. He is a former principal dancer with The Royal Ballet in London, and guest principal in other theatres around the world.
Vadim Muntagirov is a Russian ballet dancer. He is currently a principal dancer at The Royal Ballet in London and previously a lead principal dancer at the English National Ballet.
Petrus Bosman was a South African ballet dancer, teacher, choreographer, and répétiteur, active in England, France, and the United States.
Johaar Mosaval is a retired South African ballet dancer who rose to prominence as a principal dancer with England's Royal Ballet. He was among the first "persons of color" to perform major roles with an internationally known ballet company during the 1960s.
Gary Burne was a Rhodesian dancer, ballet master, and choreographer who spent ten years with the Royal Ballet in England before moving to South Africa to dance with ballet companies in Johannesburg and Cape Town. He also danced for a period in Toronto, Canada.
Leo Quayle was a South African conductor described as the "South African maestro of music theatre."
The Nederburg awards for ballet and opera in South Africa was established in 1972. Previously, the arts across the South African provinces were assisted by the Stellenbosch Farmers' Wineries Trust, which commissioned drama, opera and ballet and offered bursaries to students. One of the ballets financed by the Trust was David Poole's Kami in 1976. The Oude Libertas Study bursary also allowed dancers such as Veronica Paeper, Dudley Tomlinson, June Hattersley to study overseas.