The Ballets Russes was an itinerant ballet company begun in Paris that performed between 1909 and 1929 throughout Europe and on tours to North and South America. The company never performed in Russia, where the Revolution disrupted society. After its initial Paris season, the company had no formal ties there.
Poster by Jean Cocteau for the 1911 Ballet Russe season showing Nijinsky in costume for Le Spectre de la rose, Paris
Sergei Diaghilev, founder of the Ballets Russes
Ballet Russes by August Macke, 1912
Image: Pavillion d'Armide by A. Benois 01
Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev, also known as Serge Diaghilev, was a Russian art critic, patron, ballet impresario and founder of the Ballets Russes, from which many famous dancers and choreographers would arise.
Diaghilev in 1910
Sergei Diaghilev by Valentin Serov, 1904
Sergei Diaghilev with his nanny, 1905, Léon Bakst
Diaghilev's gravestone, Isola di San Michele, Orthodox section, Venice, Italy (April 2011)