The Resume

(June 6, 1898-March 8, 2001)
Born in Blessington, Ireland
Birth name was Edris Stannus
Dancer with the Ballet Russes (1920-27)
Choreographed 'Job' (1931), 'The Rake's Progress' (1935), 'Checkmate' (1937), 'The Prospect Before Us' (1940) and 'At the Fountain Head' (1963)
Founder of the Royal Ballet, the Royal Birmingham Ballet and the Royal Ballet School
Wrote 'Invitation to the Ballet' (1937), 'Come Dance With Me' (1957) and 'Step By Step' (1977)
Dubbed the 'godmother of British ballet'

Why she might be annoying:

Ballet Russes head Sergei Diaghilev mocked her chosen name as sounding 'half tart, half French royal family.'
In her autobiography 'Come Dance with Me,' she noted she was married but never mentioned her husband's name.
Dancer Moira Shearer described her as 'a ruthless dictator.'

Why she might not be annoying:

She had a bout with polio that went undetected as a child, which caused pain later in life.
She was married to Arthur Connell for 51 years until his death.
A critic wrote, 'She set very high, rigorous standards and didn't allow anyone to fall below them, including herself.'
On the eve of her 100th birthday she told an interviewer, 'I'm not one of those people who say, 'They don't know how to dance these days.' Because they do know and they're much better than we ever were. I hate these oldies who say there aren't any good dancers now.'

Credit: C. Fishel

Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

• Ballet Dancers
• C. Fishel's Profiles [Series 36]
• Choreographers
• Dames
• Green Eyes
• I Died in 2001 (Ranked: 102)
• I Get Migraines
• I Have Polio
• I Lived in Three Centuries
• I Lived to 100 (Ranked: 102)
• Look at Me, Yes You! - Finger Pointers
• Profiles 31251-31500 (Ranked: 31351)
• Teachers
• We Celebrated Our Golden Anniversary

Year In Review:

In 2023, Out of 72 Votes: 65.28% Annoying
In 2022, Out of 14 Votes: 85.71% Annoying
In 2021, Out of 166 Votes: 59.04% Annoying
In 2020, Out of 144 Votes: 52.08% Annoying
In 2019, Out of 35 Votes: 51.43% Annoying
In 2018, Out of 64 Votes: 56.25% Annoying
In 2017, Out of 3 Votes: 100% Annoying
In 2016, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2015, Out of 5 Votes: 40.0% Annoying
In 2014, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2013, Out of 10 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
In 2012, Out of 17 Votes: 35.29% Annoying
In 2011, Out of 30 Votes: 53.33% Annoying