The choreographer Janine Charrat, great classical ballerina who had to interrupt her dancing career in 1961 after being severely burned in a fire, died Tuesday in Paris at the age of 93, told her friend of the dancer, Sylvie Nègre.
Janine Charrat had a great success in 1945 with his first choreography, “Jeu de Cartes” and creates throughout her career fifty ballets, many with Maurice Béjart, and in 1948, with the writer Jean Genet “Adame miroir.”
In 1961, during the televised recording of the ballet “Les Algues” her tutu catches fire in passing a lit candle. The dancer turned into a human torch and suffers 70% burns.
She returns to the dance in 1964 and then permanently stops the scene in 1968. But she became meantime artistic director of Les Ballets the Grand Theater of Geneva and continued her choreographic activities.
“Jeu de Cartes was her favorite ballet”
Born July 24, 1924 in Grenoble, Janine Charrat is discovered by Serge Lifar, who makes debut at 12 years in the role of “Rose Mouse” from the film “The Dying Swan” (1936). After being the first partner Roland Petit during the war, she knows the glory in 1945, when sign “Jeu de Cartes” for the Ballets des Champs-Elysées.
“Jeu de Cartes was her favorite ballet, she repeated to me the day before his death”, told Sylvie Nègre to AFP. Janine Charrat chained success as “ Cressida” (1946), “Abraxas” to Berlin (1949), “the links” in Brussels (1960), and her career was spent mostly outside France.
In the 80s, Janine Charrat, who was counselor to dance at the Center Georges Pompidou, was especially created “Hecuba” (1982) and “The Ice Palace” (1987).
She was an officer of the Legion of Honor.
