Moira Shearer (1926-2006)

I came rather late to the joys of classical ballet, so I never saw Moira Shearer dance. But the impact that this red-headed Scottish beauty had on some of the dancers that I have seen was evident.

Shearer, who died Monday, was best known for her starring role as the ballerina wannabe debutante in "The Red Shoes," the marvelous 1948 film. (See photo.)

Unfortunately, the movie tended to overshadow her important and lasting contribution to the dance world as a star in London’s incomparable Royal Ballet of the 1950s, and its predecessor company, the Sadler’s Wells, where she performed with Margot Fonteyn and Pamela May. Together they danced the 19^th century classics and the works created by the great British choreographer Frederick Ashton, whose wickedly funny “Cinderella” happens to be a personal fave.

Shearer was no slacker. She also had a film career, wrote books and a newspaper column, and raised four children with her husband, writer-broadcaster Ludovic Kennedy.