Mission Statement

The mission of the Andaházy Ballet Company and of the Andaházy School of Classical Ballet is to nurture and to exemplify a correct, passionate and reverent understanding of the Art of Ballet.

We are committed to...

Our Ultimate Mission

To glorify the Creator by our commitment to this Mission, and by serving all who come to join in it through their vocations as entertainers and as members of a community of people made in their Creator’s Image.

In Anticipation

The Andaházy Ballet Company and the Andaházy School of Classical Ballet seek to create an educational and artistic organization which enriches the life of the entire community through the support of individuals, corporations, members, parents, and others.

While being inspired by our past, we leap into the future, seeking to create together a better and more meaningful world in which to live.

History

Andaházy Ballet Company & Andaházy School of Classical Ballet of Minneapolis/Saint Paul, Minnesota

The Andaházy School of Classical Ballet is the hard-earned dream of two members of the Russian Ballet who moved to St. Paul in 1945. They instructed in the exacting technique of classical ballet before opening their own school in January 1947. The School has been recognized as one of the finest ballet academies in the Country.

The dream began with 15-year-old ballet student Anna Adrianova (née, Shirley Bridge) who was rewarded by her father with a trip to New York City from her home in Rochester, New York, to see a performance of Col. W. de Basil’s Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. The young girl was inspired to go backstage and, after the performance, she requested an audition.

Surprisingly, she was granted the time of Sol Hurok, the worldwide sponsor of the company and Léonide Massine, legendary choreographer, who demanded that she perform without music. Her technique and artistry so impressed them that they asked her how soon she could join the troupe. Young Anna Adrianova had auditioned unbeknownst to her parents back home. Her success had surprised even her, and when she had been asked to join the troupe she withheld her enthusiasm until she exited the theatre. Once outside, she let out such a scream of joy that she lost her voice and could only whisper the news of her accomplishment to her unbelieving parents when she arrived home.

There was the matter of wrapping up her high school studies (she was only a sophomore), which took a few weeks. By then, the telegram confirming her selection had arrived. Her parents signed the documents and Anna was launched on her ballet career.

One night in 1936 Anna Adrianova was performing in Massine’s Choreartium and in the audience was a young man who was attending the production because he had been asked to fill a need for men in an upcoming ballet. He was trained as a gymnast and equestrian and was considering the offer. He was quite taken that evening with the beauty of ballet - actually so taken he was ready to change his whole life to become a part of it himself, but even more taken by the beautiful young Anna Adrianova. Before even having met her, he announced to his friend that he was going to marry the ballerina who was dancing “The Girl in Blue” in the Third Movement of the ballet to the music of Johannes Brahms.

Lóránt Andaházy gave up gymnastics and horsemanship and turned to serious study of ballet. It was most providential that his first teacher, Serge Nadejdin, had been the Director of the Imperial Theatre of Drama and Ballet in St. Petersburg, Russia. He received top training from his first exposure to this demanding art form. Lorand and Anna were married in 1941 at “The Little Church Around the Corner” in Manhattan during a tour of the Ballet Russe to New York. They moved to St. Paul in 1945 after Lorand fulfilled, with great distinction, his U.S. Army service. Anna, as well, served her country by joining the USO Foxhole Ballet and entertained the U.S. troupes throughout Europe. They had chosen St. Paul because they had toured to the area and knew the strong classical music climate in the Twin Cities. The couple was also aware of the extraordinary reputation that the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra (now Minnesota Orchestra) had attained internationally. They set about teaching the Russian (pre-Soviet) method of ballet. Economic times were difficult as the nation was recovering from war. Making a living and supporting a growing family by teaching ballet seemed out of reach. The young couple decided to join the original touring production of Carousel as a way to get to Europe and continue their professional careers there. Their plans were interrupted by a change in British union agreements that excluded most American performers.

Lorand and Anna Adrianova Andaházy opened their School of Classical Ballet in January 1947. Their first location was 134 West 6th Street in St. Paul. The school quickly outgrew its first location and moved to 1680 Grand Avenue, where a former restaurant had a second story floor designed for dancing. They taught ballet in the large room and lived with their first two sons (Lorand D., Jr. and Zoltán) in a small room that, in later years, became the men’s dressing room for the studio. They also established Minneapolis locations which ran for over 25 years with studios in Minneapolis (also on Grand Avenue), Edina, and St. Louis Park.

The Andaházy Ballet Company (the Andaházy Ballet Borealis, as it was then called) was begun in 1952. Its first performance was Snow Maidens, an original work by the Andaházys developed for the St. Paul Winter Carnival. Later, in 1952 - August 11th, to be exact, the full company premiered in a performance at the University of Minnesota’s Northrop Memorial Auditorium that broke all attendance records for the University Department of Concerts and Lectures’ Summer Session.

The company has performed Anna Adrianova’s noted Lenten religious work, Los Seises nearly every year from 1965 through 2002. It has also appeared in major theaters in the Twin Cities, traveled nationally and internationally, and appeared on commercial and public television stations.

Anna Adrianova Andaházy passed away on December 1st, 1983. Lóránt (Lorand) Andaházy died on February 19th, 1986. Under the Directorship of the Andaházy’s third son, Marius, the Andaházy School of Classical Ballet remained at its St. Paul location until 1996 when it became evident that it would be more propitious to ally the School with two major Academic Institutions.

The 2013-14 academic year marks the 30th Anniversary season of the Andaházy program in a college preparatory setting. It has been offered as a daily addition to the first through twelfth grade curriculum of the Convent of the Visitation School in a suburb of St. Paul. It is also the 16th year that a higher education curriculum is offered at the University of Wisconsin, River Falls.

Marius Andaházy is a classically trained dancer, teacher, lecturer, and choreographer.

He is currently Ballet Master in-Residence for the University of Wisconsin, River Falls and also heads The Department of Ballet at the K-12 Convent of the Visitation School in St. Paul.

Marius’ first teachers were his parents, Lorand Andaházy and Anna Adrianova, who were former artists of the Colonel W. de Basil’s Original Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. Marius trained with scholarships at New York City Ballet’s School of American Ballet and the American Ballet Theatre School. He also trained with Soviet Russia’s Bolshoi and Kirov (Mariinsky) Ballets during eight North American tours.

Marius performed both classical and modern works throughout Scandinavia and Europe as a member of the Royal Swedish Ballet, working with the leading choreographers and teachers of the international ballet scene.

For the Andaházy School of Classical Ballet and Andaházy Ballet Company, Marius provided directorship with emphasis on more rigorous methodology in training. He introduced the Vaganova method as early as 1969. His efforts culminated with the Summer Intensive Courses which boasted a faculty that included some of Russia’s major pedagogues, and attracted students internationally.

Marius understood early on the invaluable heritage that his parents gave him. The elder Andaházys had danced leading roles under the personal guidance of greats such as Fokine, Massine and Balanchine. When they started their own company in the Twin Cities, they recreated several of the ballets of the Diaghilev repertoire with inspired artistry and great accuracy. As the heir to this legacy, Marius has been gathering interviews towards a documentary, and is hoping to stage some of the major classical and original works in the Andaházy Ballet Company repertoire, so as to pass this knowledge and inspiration on to future generations of dancers.

Marius Andaházy seeks to carry forth the traditions of the Andaházy School of Classical Ballet as expressed by his mother many years ago,

It is our aim to nurture a reverent understanding of ballet and to inspire a knowledge of its correct use technically and artistically.

Upcoming Events

Gala Legacy Event & Reunion / August 2014

Tentatively scheduled for August 2014, the Gala Legacy Event & Reunion will be hosted by the Convent of the Visitation School in Saint Paul, Minnesota as a chance to bring together former members of the Andahazy Ballet Company, ballet enthusiasts, faculty and students. Please click the button below to sign up to be notified of any updates related to this event. We look forward to seeing you there.

Contact

For all inquiries, please contact Marius Andaházy.