Dame Margot Fonteyn (born: Margaret Hookham) was England's grand lady of ballet. Knighted by the British Empire in 1956, Fonteyn combined grace, technical skill and imagination. Best remembered for her portrayal of Aurora in #The Sleeping Beauty, Fonteyn created numerous role for ballets by choreographer Sir Frederick Ashton. Making her debut in 1934 with Vic-Wells Ballet Company, later renamed Sadler's Wells Ballet Company and, then, the Royal Ballet Company, Fonteyn continued to dance well into her sixties. In the 1960s and '70s, she collaborated with Russian-born dancer Rudolf Nureyev. In 1979, she received the rare title, "Prima Ballerina Absoluta". Fonteyn's skills as a dancer were apparent from an early age. Starting lessons at the age of four, she went on to study in London with Russian teacher and dancer Seraphima Astafieva. Although she began her association with the Vic-Wells Ballet Company as a chorus dancer, she assumed roles previously danced by Alicia Markova within a year. By 1940, she was accepted as a prima ballerina. In 1954, Fonteyn became president of the Royal Academy of Dancing. ~ Craig Harris, Rovi