premier danseurn.
/ˌprɛmɪə dɑːnˈsəː/, /ˌprɛmɪə danˈsəː/, /ˌprɛmɪeɪ dɒnˈsəː/, U.S. /ˈˌprɛmieɪ ˌdɑnˈsər/ A leading male dancer in a ballet company. Cf. première danseuse n.
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society > leisure > dancing > ballet > [noun] > ballet-dancer > leading dancer
premier danseur1822
première danseuse1822
coryphée1828
primo ballerino1840
prima ballerina1864
première1867
etoile1922
1822 Times 5 Jan. 2/3 The following perfomers have already been engaged... For the Ballet..Monsieur Paul, Premier Danseur at the Royal Academy of Music, at Paris.
1860 W. M. Thackeray Roundabout Papers iii, in Cornhill Mag. May 634 Sir Alcide Flicflac (premier danseur of H.M. Theatre)!
1911 Times 15 Feb. 8/5 Vaslav Nijinsky, the premier danseur, is said to be the most remarkable exponent of his art in the world to-day.
1930 C. W. Beaumont tr. J. G. Noverre Lett. on Dancing & Ballets 21 If he [sc. the maître de ballet] concentrate his attention on the premières danseuses and premiers danseurs, the action becomes tedious.
1969 Times 11 Nov. 9/3 The vicissitudes of a premier danseur only half the size of his ballerina partner are worthy of consideration.
1978 Chicago June 26/3 Jacques d'Amboise, premier danseur of the New York City Ballet, returns to choreograph a special number for the evenings.
2002 Dance Europe Feb. 24/1 Both premier danseur Karl Paquette and coryphée Juliette Gernez are heavenly creatures.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1822