This is the first book-length study in any language about this Russian artist--Marius Petipa's colleague and Tchaikovsky's collaborator--who is widely celebrated and yet virtually unknown. It follows Ivanov from his infancy in a St Petersburg foundling home through to his career as a dancer, regisseur, and choreographer in the St Petersburg Imperial Ballet. Ivanov's artistic world is described, as is his legacy-- some dozen works, including Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, and the famous dances from Prince Igor--that inspired Mikhail Fokine in the next generation. The book is richly documented,...