Mme Marie Taglioni

Marie Taglioni (23 April 1804 - 24 April 1884) was one of the most famous ballerinas of the Romantic era of ballet.

Born in Stockholm, she rose to fame as a dancer when her father (and teacher) Fillipo Taglioni created the ballet La Sylphide (1832) for her. Designed as a showcase for her talent, it was the first ballet where the ballerina danced en pointe for the full length of the work.

Taglioni retired from performing in 1847. She later taught social dance to children and society ladies and also took a limited number of ballet pupils. Her only choreographic work was Le Papillon (1860) for her student Emma Livry (who famously died in 1863 when he stage costume caught fire.) Taglioni died in Marseilles in 1884.

Photographed by A. A. E. Disdéri.