Moira Shearer The "Dragonfly"

Moira Shearer was Margot Fonteyn's rival at the Royal Ballet for many years. Her starring role in THE RED SHOES (1948) made her an international star; which at that time, pre-Nureyev, far eclipsed Fonteyn who was known primarily just by the English public. There are stories Fonteyn was jealous and limited Shearer's ascent at the Royal, but she still emerged a major ballerina. She made more films as an actress, and never really got the ballet career she so richly deserved. In this dance from the film THE TALES OF HOFFMAN; produced and directed by the same team who made The Red Shoes, Shearer displays her slim and gorgeously proportioned body (and Balanchine had nothing to do with this), and her theatrical flair.