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Asaf MessererBallet dancer, choreographer and teacher
Date of Birth: 19.11.1903
Country:  Lithuania |
Content:
Biography of Asaf Messerer
Asaf Mikhailovich Messerer was a ballet artist, ballet master, and educator whose art contributed to the expansion of possibilities in male dance, enriching and complexifying the vocabulary of ballet performances. Born on November 6, 1903, in Vilnius, he passed away in 1992. Messerer was a Soviet ballet artist, ballet master, and educator. He was honored as a People's Artist of the RSFSR in 1951 and as a Meritorious Artist of Lithuania in 1953.
Early Career
After graduating from the Moscow Choreographic School in 1921, Messerer was accepted into the Bolshoi Theatre troupe as a student of A. A. Gorsky and V. D. Tikhomirov. His art contributed to the expansion of possibilities in male dance, enriching and complexifying the vocabulary of ballet performances. Some of his best roles included Kolen in "The Vain Precaution" by Gertel, Basil in "Don Quixote" by Minkus, Philippe in "The Flames of Paris" by Asafyev, Acrobat in "The Red Poppy" by Glière, and Petrushka in "Petrushka" by Stravinsky.
Popularity and Teaching
Messerer gained particular popularity with his concert number "The Footballer" set to music by A. N. Tsfasman. From 1926, he performed as a ballet master. Since 1921, he has been teaching, with a tenure at the Moscow Choreographic School from 1923 to 1960. From 1946, he led a class for the improvement of ballet artists at the Bolshoi Theatre. Messerer was awarded the State Prize of the USSR in 1941 and 1947. He was decorated with three orders and several medals.
