Louise Kay and Edouard Espinosa - Lonsdale Road, Barnes, London, UK
N 51° 29.167 W 000° 14.295
30U E 691742 N 5707502
The blue plaque, to Edouard Espinosa and Louise Kay, is attached to the dance studio on the south side of Lonsdale Road opposite St Paul's School. The building is set back from the road and the co-ordinates are for a suitable viewing point.
Waymark Code: WMNXFH
Location: London, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 05/18/2015
Views: 1
The British Ballet Organisation (BBO) website tells us:
Woolborough House in London was the Espinosa family home from 1913. On the formation of the BBO, it became and remains today the Headquarters of the Organization. Many famous students studied with Espinosa at Woolborough House, including Phyllis Bedells and Ninette de Valois. In 1932 a studio was built alongside the house which has continued to host classes and BBO examinations and provides rehearsal space for many leading dance companies and professional artists.
The same webpage goes on to tell us about Edouard Espinosa:
Edouard Espinosa (1871-1950)
Born in Moscow - the son of Léon Espinosa and Mathilda Oberst.
Edouard Espinosa, as well as performing, assisted his father producing and choreographing for music hall, pantomime and plays throughout Britain and abroad. Edouard showed a particular talent for teaching and analysing steps and subsequently became Maitre de Ballet for Royal Covent Garden Opera, The Empire, The Alhambra and theatres in Paris, Berlin and New York. Espinosa codified the steps his father taught, which became the basis for the first structured syllabus of its kind to be devised internationally. Edouard was part of a large family, including his brothers Marius and Leo and his three sisters, who all became dancers and teachers, Judith, Ray and Lea Espinosa.
Espinosa was co-founder and Principal Examiner of the Association of Operatic Dancing. When he broke away from that body, many of his students had become prominent teachers in various parts of the British Isles and they formed the nucleus of the British Ballet Organization. Over the years, the Organization expanded, offering a syllabus and examinations in dance. It extended its influence to South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and India as well as all over the British Isles.
The webpage also tells us about Eve Louise Kelland (Louise Kay):
Eve Louise Kelland (1889-1943)
Born in Sydney, Australia - wife of Edouard Espinosa.
Eve Kelland started her theatrical career as an actress and singer. She became organiser and administrator of the BBO, and in 1928 she started The Dancer magazine, under the name of Louise Kay. Their working partnership, promoting British dance and the BBO, was to continue for almost forty years.
