The Queen Consort has presented legendary ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov with one of the most exclusive dance awards.
On 16 November, Camilla presented Baryshnikov with the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Award to honour his exceptional work and longstanding career in dance.
The Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Award was established in 1953 by the first president of the Royal Academy of Dance, Dame Adelaide Genee, to mark the young Queen’s Coronation and new role as Patron of the RAD. Queen Elizabeth took the role of patron after her grandmother, Queen Mary, passed away in 1953.
The Coronation Award was first given in 1954 to Dame Ninette de Valois, who founded the Royal Ballet, the Royal Ballet School, and the Birmingham Royal Ballet.
Other award recipients include Rudolf Nureyev, Princess Margaret, and Alicia Markova.
Baryshnikov was born in 1948 in Soviet Latvia. He studied at the Vaganova School in St Petersburg, which dates back to the eighteenth century.
He joined the then-Kirov Ballet in 1967 and quickly became an incredibly popular dancer, with countless choreographers wanting to work with him.
In 1974 while on tour, Baryshnikov defected to Canada to escape Soviet Russia. In the 1970s and 1980s, he danced with several major companies, including the National Ballet of Canada, the American Ballet Theatre, and the New York City Ballet. In addition to continuing to choreograph, he also has done a lot of acting work.
The Queen Consort has recently become very interested in ballet. At an engagement in 2018, Camilla saw a RAD Silver Swans class, a program that is aimed at providing ballet and movement classes for older adults to continue moving and help with posture, coordination, and energy levels.
In 2020, the then-Duchess of Cornwall was appointed the Vice-Patron of the Royal Academy of Dance and opened its new headquarters in March 2022.
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