Serge Lifar’s path to stardom is a true Cinderella story. After fleeing his native, war-torn Ukraine at the age of 17 to join Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes as a simple dancer, by the age of 25 he was already a choreographer and ballet master at the Paris Opéra. Serge Lifar fascinated the public and found himself at the crossroads of contemporary artistic creation, collaborating with Picasso, Bakst, Chanel, and Cocteau. His technique and his creativity revolutionized ballet and gave birth to a new “neo-classical” esthetic.
