Descriptive Summary
Important Information for Researchers
Collection Scope and Content Summary
Indexing Terms
Descriptive Summary
Title: Harcourt Algeranoff photograph album
Date: circa 1922-1928
Collection Number: MS-P060
Creator:
Algeranoff, Harcourt, 1903-1967
Extent:
0.4 linear feet
(1 box)
Languages: The collection is in English.
Repository:
University of California, Irvine. Library. Special Collections and Archives.
Irvine, California 92623-9557
Abstract: This photograph album was created by ballet dancer and choreographer Harcourt Algeranoff, who partnered Anna Pavlova during
her world tours. The album contains 178 photographs from 1922 to 1928 depicting the Pavlova Company on tour in South Africa,
Egypt, and India, as well as moments from Algeranoff's personal life.
Important Information for Researchers
Access
The collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
Property rights reside with the University of California. Intellectual property rights are retained by the creators of the
records and their heirs. For permissions to reproduce or to publish, please contact the Head of Special Collections and Archives.
Preferred Citation
Harcourt Algeranoff Photograph Album. MS-P060. Special Collections and Archives, The UC Irvine Libraries, Irvine, California.
Acquisition Information
Acquired, 2003.
Biography
Ballet dancer and choreographer Harcourt Algernon Leighton Essex was most famous for partnering Anna Pavlova. He was born
on April 18, 1903 in London. He danced under the name of Harcourt Algeranoff and began his career as a character soloist.
He toured Europe, North and South America, Asia, Australia, and Africa with Anna Pavlova's dance company from 1921 until Pavlova's
death in 1931. Algeranoff adopted Pavlova's dance philosophy of blending conventional ballet with multi-cultural and ethnic
dances. In addition to traditional Western dance, he studied Japanese and Indian dancing. He partnered Pavlova in
Russian Dance and impressed audiences with his performances in
Oriental Impressions and
Don Quixote.
In the years following Pavlova's death, Algeranoff was a member of several dance companies, including the Dandré-Levitoff
Company, the Markova-Dolin Ballet, and De Basil's Ballets Russes. He also choreographed for the International Ballet Company
and the Carl Rosa Opera Company. During the 1950s he served as ballet master for the Norwegian State Opera and Ballet Company,
the Borovansky Ballet Company (Australia), and the North-West Victorian Ballet Society (Australia).
In 1945 Algeranoff married French dancer Claudie Léonard. They had a son, Nöel. Claudie later left Algeranoff to marry New
Zealand dancer Ronald Reay. Harcourt Algeranoff died in an auto accident near Robinvale, Victoria in Australia on April 7,
1967.
Bibliography
Algeranoff, Harcourt.
My Years With Pavlova. London: Heinemann, 1957.
Southey, R. J. "Algeranoff, Harcourt (1903 - 1967),"
Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 13, Melbourne University Press, 1993.
Collection Scope and Content Summary
This collection comprises a photograph album created by ballet dancer and choreographer Harcourt Algeranoff, who partnered
Anna Pavlova during her world tours. The album contains 178 sepia-toned and black-and-white photographs of various sizes.
Photographs date approximately from 1922 to 1928 and depict the Pavlova Company on tour in South Africa, Egypt, and India.
Photographs include a few shots of the dancers on stage and many shots of the troupe during their travels. Photographs depict
the company in formal daywear on the decks of ships, riding camels, exploring a jungle, and sightseeing. Shots of Pavlova
include photographs of her on stage in costume and one in daywear with a South African tribal dancer. The album also includes
monuments such as the Taj Mahal and Agra Fort in India and snapshots of Algeranoff's family and friends.
The photograph album is made of heavy brown stock tied with green silk and pink grosgrain ribbons and measures 23 x 20 x 3
cm. A pen-and-ink sketch of a dancer enhanced with green and pink watercolor is mounted on the cover of the album. Algeranoff
occasionally painted as a hobby and may be the creator of this unsigned sketch.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Subjects
Algeranoff, Harcourt, 1903-1967 -- Archives.
Pavlova, Anna, 1881-1931 -- Archives.
Ballet -- Archives.
Genres and Formats of Materials
Photograph albums -- 20th century.
Photographic prints -- 20th century.
Occupations
Ballet dancers.
No online items
