Michael Somes
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Michael George Somes CBE (28 September 1917 – 18 November 1994), was a leading English ballet dancer. He was a principal danseur of the Royal Ballet, London, and was the frequent partner of Margot Fonteyn.
Somes was born in Horsley, Gloucestershire, England. In 1934, he was awarded the first scholarship given to a male by the Royal Ballet (then known as the Vic-Wells Ballet). He originated roles in 24 ballets choreographed for the company by Sir Frederick Ashton, and was the lead male dancer for the company from 1951 until the arrival of Rudolf Nureyev in 1962. From then on, Somes appeared in character roles, most notably as Lord Capulet in Romeo and Juliet. Somes was assistant director of the company under Ashton from 1963-70.
Somes appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1954, and in television versions of The Sleeping Beauty (1955), The Nutcracker (1958), and Romeo and Juliet (1966).
In 1959, Somes was named a Commander of the British Empire. He was married to and divorced from ballerina Dame Antoinette Sibley DBE, and later married ballerina Wendy Ellis. He died of a brain tumour in London in 1994.
