Romola de Pulszky
Encyclopedia
Romola de Pulszky (married name Nijinsky; February 20, 1894 – June 8, 1978), was a Hungarian
aristocrat, the daughter of a Hungarian actress who became the wife of the famous ballet dancer Vaslav Nijinsky
.
in Budapest
, Hungary
, and decided to shift her focus to the theatrical world of ballet. She was particularly astounded by the dancing of her future husband, Vaslav Nijinsky
, as were all of his audiences. It became her life's goal to dance for the Ballets Russes
and to somehow become close to Nijinsky. For months she traveled on tour with the Ballets Russes and began to take ballet lessons from Enrico Cecchetti
. She persuaded the group's director, Sergei Diaghilev
to let her join the corps de ballet
, where she could finally be near her idol. Not realizing that he was in an intimate relationship with Diaghilev (who was seventeen years older than Nijinsky), she found it very difficult to even talk to Nijinsky alone. She eventually got close to them while on a boat headed for South America
, while Diaghilev was far away. Days before their arrival to Buenos Aires
, Argentina
, Nijinsky proposed to Romola and they eloped shortly after they arrived.
The results of their marriage, on September 1, 1913, were eventually catastrophic for Nijinsky. Romola became pregnant right away, causing Nijinsky to miss performances due to sickening symptoms of couvade
. This gave Diaghilev legal grounds to fire him, which he did via a telegram sent on March 12, 1913. Romola gave birth to Kyra Nijinsky in Vienna
, Austria
on June 18, 1914, ten days before the Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
. The newlywed couple and their infant daughter were put on house arrest in Emilia Markus's home in Budapest. Having spent two years as war prisoners in Hungary
they managed to get permission to leave to New York
with the aid of Diaghilev. They embarked on a tour of North America, followed by a tour to South America.
Following Nijinsky's final three-year engagements with the Ballets Russes, which caused him a great deal of stress, the family settled in St Moritz, Switzerland
until the end of the Great War. Two months after the armistice at the end of World War I
, Nijinsky began to exhibit signs of a severe psychosis
, for which he was committed to a series of Swiss mental institutions over the course of 30 years, including Burghölzli
, the Bellevue Sanatorium in Kreuzlingen
. He was originally diagnosed as schizophrenic by Eugen Bleuler
in 1919. He was then treated by a number of psychiatrists with minimal results. In 1920, while her husband was still undergoing treatment, she gave birth to their second daughter Tamara Nijinsky. In 1934, Romola published a biography of Nijinsky in New York titled Nijinsky by Romola Nijinsky. In 1936, Romola heard about a new treatment for schizophrenia
and contacted the founder of this treatment, Manfred Sakel
, to have her husband treated. In 1938, Nijinsky began to receive regular insulin shock therapy
(IST) over the course of a year, until the beginning of World War II
.
Romola spent most of World War II in Budapest
with Nijinsky, whose illness was in partial remission from the IST. However, out of concern for her husband's safety after the German invasion of Budapest, Romola took her husband to Sopron
where they stayed until the end of the war. In 1946, Romola published an abridged version of Nijinsky's Diaries. Nijinsky died on April 8, 1950 in London
, England
. In 1952 Romola published her second biography of Nijinsky called The Last Years of Nijinsky. Romola died in Paris
on September 9, 1978.
The screenplay
was written by Edward Albee
. The film was to be directed by Tony Richardson
and star Rudolf Nureyev
as Nijinsky, Claude Jade
as Romola and Paul Scofield
as Diaghilev, but producers Albert R. Broccoli
and Harry Saltzman
canceled the project.
Directed by Herbert Ross
, starring George de la Peña
as Nijinsky, Leslie Browne
as Romola, Alan Bates
as Diaghilev and Jeremy Irons
as Fokine. Romola Nijinsky had a writing credit for the film.
Directed and written by Paul Cox
. The screenplay was based directly on Nijinsky's diaries and read over related imagery. The subject matter included his work, his sickness, and his relationships with Diaghilev as well as his wife.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
aristocrat, the daughter of a Hungarian actress who became the wife of the famous ballet dancer Vaslav Nijinsky
Vaslav Nijinsky
Vaslav Nijinsky was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer of Polish descent, cited as the greatest male dancer of the 20th century. He grew to be celebrated for his virtuosity and for the depth and intensity of his characterizations...
.
Biography
Romola de Pulszky was the daughter of Emilia Markus and Charles Pulszky. Her father was exiled when Romola was still a child and would eventually commit suicide in Australia. She tried a hand at her mother's profession (acting) and failed. She became engaged to a Hungarian baron at the age of 17, but ended up calling it off in 1912. That same year she saw a performance of the Ballets RussesBallets Russes
The Ballets Russes was an itinerant ballet company from Russia which performed between 1909 and 1929 in many countries. Directed by Sergei Diaghilev, it is regarded as the greatest ballet company of the 20th century. Many of its dancers originated from the Imperial Ballet of Saint Petersburg...
in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, and decided to shift her focus to the theatrical world of ballet. She was particularly astounded by the dancing of her future husband, Vaslav Nijinsky
Vaslav Nijinsky
Vaslav Nijinsky was a Russian ballet dancer and choreographer of Polish descent, cited as the greatest male dancer of the 20th century. He grew to be celebrated for his virtuosity and for the depth and intensity of his characterizations...
, as were all of his audiences. It became her life's goal to dance for the Ballets Russes
Ballets Russes
The Ballets Russes was an itinerant ballet company from Russia which performed between 1909 and 1929 in many countries. Directed by Sergei Diaghilev, it is regarded as the greatest ballet company of the 20th century. Many of its dancers originated from the Imperial Ballet of Saint Petersburg...
and to somehow become close to Nijinsky. For months she traveled on tour with the Ballets Russes and began to take ballet lessons from Enrico Cecchetti
Enrico Cecchetti
Enrico Cecchetti was an Italian ballet dancer, mime, and founder of the Cecchetti method. The son of two dancers from Civitanova Marche, he was born in the costuming room of the Teatro Tordinona in Rome. After an illustrious career as a dancer in Europe, he went to dance for the Imperial Ballet in...
. She persuaded the group's director, Sergei Diaghilev
Sergei Diaghilev
Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev , usually referred to outside of Russia as Serge, was a Russian art critic, patron, ballet impresario and founder of the Ballets Russes, from which many famous dancers and choreographers would arise.-Early life and career:...
to let her join the corps de ballet
Corps de ballet
In ballet, the corps de ballet is the group of dancers who are not soloists. They are a permanent part of the ballet company and often work as a backdrop for the principal dancers. A corps de ballet works as one, with synchronized movements and corresponding positioning on the stage...
, where she could finally be near her idol. Not realizing that he was in an intimate relationship with Diaghilev (who was seventeen years older than Nijinsky), she found it very difficult to even talk to Nijinsky alone. She eventually got close to them while on a boat headed for South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, while Diaghilev was far away. Days before their arrival to Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Nijinsky proposed to Romola and they eloped shortly after they arrived.
The results of their marriage, on September 1, 1913, were eventually catastrophic for Nijinsky. Romola became pregnant right away, causing Nijinsky to miss performances due to sickening symptoms of couvade
Couvade
Couvade syndrome, also called sympathetic pregnancy or phantom pregnancy, is a condition in which a man experiences some of the same symptoms and behavior of an expectant mother. These most often include minor weight gain, altered hormone levels, morning nausea, and disturbed sleep patterns...
. This gave Diaghilev legal grounds to fire him, which he did via a telegram sent on March 12, 1913. Romola gave birth to Kyra Nijinsky in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
on June 18, 1914, ten days before the Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
On 28 June 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, were shot dead in Sarajevo, by Gavrilo Princip, one of a group of six Bosnian Serb assassins coordinated by Danilo Ilić...
. The newlywed couple and their infant daughter were put on house arrest in Emilia Markus's home in Budapest. Having spent two years as war prisoners in Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
they managed to get permission to leave to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
with the aid of Diaghilev. They embarked on a tour of North America, followed by a tour to South America.
Following Nijinsky's final three-year engagements with the Ballets Russes, which caused him a great deal of stress, the family settled in St Moritz, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
until the end of the Great War. Two months after the armistice at the end of World War I
Armistice with Germany (Compiègne)
The armistice between the Allies and Germany was an agreement that ended the fighting in the First World War. It was signed in a railway carriage in Compiègne Forest on 11 November 1918 and marked a victory for the Allies and a complete defeat for Germany, although not technically a surrender...
, Nijinsky began to exhibit signs of a severe psychosis
Psychosis
Psychosis means abnormal condition of the mind, and is a generic psychiatric term for a mental state often described as involving a "loss of contact with reality"...
, for which he was committed to a series of Swiss mental institutions over the course of 30 years, including Burghölzli
Burghölzli
Burghölzli is the common name given for the psychiatric hospital of the University of Zürich, Switzerland. The hospital is located on "Burghölzli", a wooded hill in the district of Riesbach of southeastern Zürich....
, the Bellevue Sanatorium in Kreuzlingen
Kreuzlingen
Kreuzlingen is a municipality in the district of Kreuzlingen in the canton of Thurgau in north-eastern Switzerland. It is the seat of the district and is the second largest city of the canton, after Frauenfeld, with a population of over 18,000...
. He was originally diagnosed as schizophrenic by Eugen Bleuler
Eugen Bleuler
Paul Eugen Bleuler was a Swiss psychiatrist most notable for his contributions to the understanding of mental illness and for coining the term "schizophrenia."-Biography:...
in 1919. He was then treated by a number of psychiatrists with minimal results. In 1920, while her husband was still undergoing treatment, she gave birth to their second daughter Tamara Nijinsky. In 1934, Romola published a biography of Nijinsky in New York titled Nijinsky by Romola Nijinsky. In 1936, Romola heard about a new treatment for schizophrenia
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by a disintegration of thought processes and of emotional responsiveness. It most commonly manifests itself as auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions, or disorganized speech and thinking, and it is accompanied by significant social...
and contacted the founder of this treatment, Manfred Sakel
Manfred Sakel
*Fink, M , "Meduna and the Origins of Convulsive Therapy", American Journal of Psychiatry, 141: 1034-1041 *Fink, M (1984), "Meduna and the Origins of Convulsive Therapy", American Journal of Psychiatry, 141(9): 1034-1041 *Fink, M (1984), "Meduna and the Origins of Convulsive Therapy", American...
, to have her husband treated. In 1938, Nijinsky began to receive regular insulin shock therapy
Insulin shock therapy
Insulin shock therapy or insulin coma therapy was a form of psychiatric treatment in which patients were repeatedly injected with large doses of insulin in order to produce daily comas over several weeks...
(IST) over the course of a year, until the beginning of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Romola spent most of World War II in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
with Nijinsky, whose illness was in partial remission from the IST. However, out of concern for her husband's safety after the German invasion of Budapest, Romola took her husband to Sopron
Sopron
In 1910 Sopron had 33,932 inhabitants . Religions: 64.1% Roman Catholic, 27.8% Lutheran, 6.6% Jewish, 1.2% Calvinist, 0.3% other. In 2001 the city had 56,125 inhabitants...
where they stayed until the end of the war. In 1946, Romola published an abridged version of Nijinsky's Diaries. Nijinsky died on April 8, 1950 in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. In 1952 Romola published her second biography of Nijinsky called The Last Years of Nijinsky. Romola died in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
on September 9, 1978.
In film
- The Dancer (uncompleted film, 1970)
The screenplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
was written by Edward Albee
Edward Albee
Edward Franklin Albee III is an American playwright who is best known for The Zoo Story , The Sandbox , Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? , and a rewrite of the screenplay for the unsuccessful musical version of Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's . His works are considered well-crafted, often...
. The film was to be directed by Tony Richardson
Tony Richardson
Cecil Antonio "Tony" Richardson was an English theatre and film director and producer.-Early life:Richardson was born in Shipley, Yorkshire in 1928, the son of Elsie Evans and Clarence Albert Richardson, a chemist...
and star Rudolf Nureyev
Rudolf Nureyev
Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev was a Russian dancer, considered one of the most celebrated ballet dancers of the 20th century. Nureyev's artistic skills explored expressive areas of the dance, providing a new role to the male ballet dancer who once served only as support to the women.In 1961 he...
as Nijinsky, Claude Jade
Claude Jade
Claude Marcelle Jorré, better known as Claude Jade , was a French actress, known for starring as Christine in François Truffaut's three films Stolen Kisses , Bed and Board and Love on the Run . Jade acted in theatre, film and television...
as Romola and Paul Scofield
Paul Scofield
David Paul Scofield, CH, CBE , better known as Paul Scofield, was an English actor of stage and screen...
as Diaghilev, but producers Albert R. Broccoli
Albert R. Broccoli
Albert Romolo Broccoli, CBE , nicknamed "Cubby", was an American film producer, who made more than 40 motion pictures throughout his career, most of them in the United Kingdom, and often filmed at Pinewood Studios. Co-founder of Danjaq, LLC and EON Productions, Broccoli is most notable as the...
and Harry Saltzman
Harry Saltzman
Harry Saltzman was a Canadian theatre and film producer best known for his mega-gamble which resulted in his co-producing the James Bond film series with Albert R...
canceled the project.
- NijinskyNijinsky (film)Nijinsky is a 1980 American biographical film directed by Herbert Ross. Hugh Wheeler, whose screenplay centers on the later life and career of Vaslav Nijinsky, used the legendary dancer's personal diaries and his wife's 1933 book Life of Nijinsky as his primary source materials.-Synopsis:The film...
(1980)
Directed by Herbert Ross
Herbert Ross
Herbert Ross was an American film director, producer, choreographer and actor.-Early life and career:Born Herbert David Ross in Brooklyn, New York, he made his stage debut as Third Witch with a touring company of Macbeth in 1942...
, starring George de la Peña
George de la Peña
George de la Peña is an American ballet dancer, musical theatre performer, choreographer, actor, and teacher. He was born in New York City, New York, U.S....
as Nijinsky, Leslie Browne
Leslie Browne
Leslie Browne is an American ballet dancer and actress.She was born Leslie Brown, the daughter of Kelly Brown and Isabel Mirrow. She had two brothers and one sister; her brother Kevin is a film producer. At the age of seven she began dancing, and would be trained at her father's studio in Arizona,...
as Romola, Alan Bates
Alan Bates
Sir Alan Arthur Bates CBE was an English actor, who came to prominence in the 1960s, a time of high creativity in British cinema, when he demonstrated his versatility in films ranging from the popular children’s story Whistle Down the Wind to the "kitchen sink" drama A Kind of Loving...
as Diaghilev and Jeremy Irons
Jeremy Irons
Jeremy John Irons is an English actor. After receiving classical training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, Irons began his acting career on stage in 1969, and has since appeared in many London theatre productions including The Winter's Tale, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, The Taming of the...
as Fokine. Romola Nijinsky had a writing credit for the film.
- The Diaries of Vaslav Nijinsky (2001)
Directed and written by Paul Cox
Paul Cox
Paulus Henriqus Benedictus "Paul" Cox is an award-winning Australian film director.Cox was born in Venlo, Limburg, the Netherlands, the son of Else , a native of Germany, and Wim Cox, a documentary film producer. Cox emigrated to Australia in 1965...
. The screenplay was based directly on Nijinsky's diaries and read over related imagery. The subject matter included his work, his sickness, and his relationships with Diaghilev as well as his wife.