Who commissioned the 1919 ballet written by the creator of the role of the Can-Can Dancer in "La Boutique fantasque"?
Léonide Massine Leonid Fyodorovich Myasin (Russian: Леони́д Фёдорович Мя́син ), better known in the West by the French transliteration as Léonide Massine (9 August [O.S. 28 July] 1896 15 March 1979), was a Russian choreographer and ballet dancer. Massine created the world's first symphonic ballet, "Les Présages", and many others in the same vein. Besides his "symphonic ballets," Massine choreographed many other popular works during his long career, some of which were serious and dramatic, and others lighthearted and romantic. He created some of his most famous roles in his own comic works, among them the Can-Can Dancer in "La Boutique fantasque" (1919), the Hussar in "Le Beau Danube" (1924), and, perhaps best known of all, the Peruvian in "Gaîté Parisienne" (1938).
Douglas Becker Douglas Becker is a choreographer and teacher working in many idioms, including ballet, contemporary dance, and improvisation throughout Europe and the United States. A founding member and principal dancer of the Frankfurt Ballet under the direction of acclaimed choreographer William Forsythe, he played a pivotal role in the creation of many of the choreographer’s early signature pieces and is one of a number of individuals around the world with the authority to remount his repertory. In the making of his own creations, Becker's choreography has been hailed as "innovative and energetic, very graphic and with purity of movement" (Swiss newspaper "24 Heures") and praised for its "delicate, intricate partnering and fleet movements" (The New York Times). Becker's collaborative process of choreographic development improvises upon and utilizes dancers' individual talents and characteristics.