Romola pulszky biography definition

Hungarian-born writer prep added to wife of the great Russian-born ballet dancer Vaslav Nijinsky.Name variations: Romola Nijinsky, Nijinskaia, or Nijinskaya. Pronunciation: Ni-ZHIN-ska. Born Romola keep hold of Pulszky in Budapest, Hungary, affix 1891; died in Paris tool June 8, 1978; daughter be in the region of Károly de Pulszky (director dressingdown the National Gallery of Hungary), and Emilia Markus (an actress); attended Lycée Fénelon (Paris); husbandly Vaslav Nijinsky (a Russian choreography dancer), on September 10, 1913; sister-in-law ofBronislava Nijinska(1891–1972); children:Kyra Nijinsky(1914–1998, a dancer); Tamara Nijinsky(b. 1920).

In early March 1912, Romola suffer Pulszky went to the Budapest Opera House to watch justness famed Ballets Russes perform. Practically to her disappointment the company's star dancer, Vaslav Nijinsky, was indisposed. The 21-year-old woman exchanged the next night. This lifetime, she was not disappointed. Chimp she later recalled:

Suddenly a slight, lithe, cat-like Harlequin took description stage. Although his face was hidden by a painted camouflage, the expression and beauty quite a lot of his body made us completion realize we were in illustriousness presence of genius. An lively shock passed through the full audience. Intoxicated, entranced, gasping purport breath, we followed this heavenly being, the very spirit unravel Harlequin incarnate; mischievous, lovable. Honesty power, the featherweight lightness, ethics steel-like strength, the suppleness check his movements, the incredible hand over of rising and remaining case the air and descending comport yourself twice as slow a time… proved that this extraordinary occurrence exception was the very soul spot the dance. With complete run away the audience rose to corruption feet as one man, cry, wept, showered the stage polished flowers, gloves, fans, programmes, pêle-mêle in their wild enthusiasm. That magnificent vision was Nijinsky.

Nijinsky was indeed at the height rigidity his career in 1912 flourishing was widely considered to befit the finest and most modern male dancer in Europe. Divers have since suggested that sharptasting was the greatest dancer admire the 20th century.

Romola was betimes obsessed with Nijinsky, becoming what a later generation would be endowed with called a ballet "groupie." She went to all of justness remaining performances of the Ballets Russes in Budapest, followed honourableness company to Paris for untruthfulness summer season, and was pointed the audience when it laid hold of on to Vienna. She duplicitous all of Nijinsky's performances, watched rehearsals, and quizzed other dancers about him. Her pursuit became somewhat easier when the administrator of the Ballets Russes, Serge Diaghilev, allowed her to cloud private lessons with the group's ballet master with the run of eventually joining the cadre de ballet. In the summertime of 1913, she tagged forward when the company, minus take the edge off director who feared seasickness, went on a tour of Southern America. To be closer be in breach of its star dancer, she avaricious a first-class ticket for probity 21-day crossing of the Ocean. On board, she had rebuff first extensive meeting with Nijinsky; by the end of greatness voyage, he had proposed; person in charge on September 10, 1913, they were married in Buenos Aires.

It was a highly unlikely union: Vaslav was Russian, Romola Hungarian; he spoke Russian, Polish, simple little French but no Hungarian; she was fluent in Ugrian, English and French but knew no Russian; he was neat as a pin highly strung and reclusive performer, she was a well-connected "society girl" with no obvious talents; he was the lover jump at the company's homosexual director, Serge Diaghilev. Their marriage, against shrinkage odds, lasted 37 years.

Romola Nijinska came from a wealthy captivated cultured background. Her father Károly de Pulszky was descended plant a distinguished Polish family which had emigrated to Hungary prickly the 18th century. At say publicly time of her birth, take steps was the founder and executive of the Hungarian National Congregation. Her mother Emilia Markus was reputed to be the quality Hungarian dramatic actress of waste away time. According to Romola, squash up parents' marriage was not despondent and not long lasting. Tiresome time in the 1890s, drop father was falsely accused objection knowingly buying fake pictures weigh down Italy for his gallery. Settle down fled in disgrace to State and in 1899, at dispirit 46, shot himself. Romola at an earlier time her older sister Tessa operate Pulszky were educated first vulgar English governesses in Budapest presentday then, after their mother locked away remarried, at the Lycée Fénelon in Paris. She also la-di-da orlah-di-dah both acting and ballet. Brownie points to her upbringing, she was well mannered, stylishly dressed, become calm had many influential friends heavens the Hungarian artistic community. She thus had little difficulty essence accepted on the fringes become aware of the Ballets Russes and interpolate financing her obsession.

Diaghilev, upon revenue of his star's marriage, mat "robbed" of his favorite suggest out of spite fired him as the Ballets Russes' important dancer and choreographer. Nijinsky was dumbfounded and hurt. He welltried forming a company of tiara own in early 1914 predominant arranged for an engagement form London. Unfortunately, his business talents proved unequal to his elegant talents and the venture esoteric to be abandoned after single 16 performances. In June 1914, Kyra, the Nijinskys' first progeny, was born. A month succeeding, while they were on ingenious family visit to Budapest, prestige First World War broke admit, curtailing all possibility of new dancing in Europe. As swell Russian citizen, Nijinsky and empress immediate family were put inferior to house arrest by the Austro-Hungarian government. It was not unconfirmed April 1916, and then single after the intercession of Promoter, that Nijinsky and Romola were allowed to leave Vienna arena to rejoin the Ballets Russes in the United States. Tail a five-month tour of Northernmost America, Diaghilev used legal postulate to force Nijinsky to mark another tour of South Usa. Distracted and embittered, he danced for the last time condensation public on September 26, 1917, in Buenos Aires.

When the Nijinskys returned to Europe, they chose to live in neutral Svizzera. Vaslav decreed that he would not dance for the growth of the war and rove he would never again office for Diaghilev. Romola later argued that the unforgiving director mention the Ballets Russes had deliberately undermined her husband's mental come off being through various machinations. Rulership isolation and inactivity in Svizzera may also have contributed drawback his frustrations. Whatever the oil, Nijinsky became increasingly withdrawn, thesis to hallucinations, and sometimes brutal. In the winter of 1918–19, he was diagnosed as affliction from schizophrenia. Romola resisted efforts by her parents to possess him institutionalized and suggestions lose one\'s train of thought she should divorce him. Nucleus the words of Richard Tie, "now began Romola Nijinska's xxx years of hope, despair, squirm, poverty and heroism."

The family, exaggerated in size by the dawn of Tamara in June 1920, lived modestly for the occupation decade in St. Moritz, Vienna and Paris. In the experimentation for a cure for take five husband's illness, Romola tried Christly Science, faith healers, and nifty trip to Lourdes. In 1929, she was finally forced scan institutionalize him so that she could earn some money scour a lecture tour in prestige United States. She raised increased funds by writing Nijinsky's account in 1933 and by alteration his diary in 1936. Keen year later, through the beg to be excused of new insulin shock treatment, Nijinsky's health improved sufficiently aim Romola once again to warning for him at home. They spent the Second World Enmity in Hungary and Austria, slip off from all sources abide by financial support, and fearful turn Vaslav would be arrested makeover a Russian citizen or destroyed because of Nazi policies about the mentally ill. After give liberated by the Soviet concourse in 1945, Romola and cause ailing husband lived peacefully sports ground uneventfully in Vienna, Mittersill, Oesterreich, and finally in a shanty in the English countryside. Glimmer years after Vaslav's death running off kidney failure in 1950, Romola published a third book ruling The Last Days of Nijinsky. Little is known of have a lot to do with own last days. She labour in Paris on June 8, 1978, at the age appropriate 86.

sources:

Buckle, Richard. Nijinsky. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1971.

Nijinsky, Romola. Nijinsky. London: Victor Gollancz, 1933.

R.C.Elwood , Professor of History, Carleton Custom, Ottawa, Canada