<Tr> <Th> Education </Th> <Td> Brussels Conservatory Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Known for </Th> <Td> Ballet, Choreography </Td> </Tr> <P> Marius Ivanovich Petipa (Russian: Ма́риус Ива́нович Петипа́), born Victor Marius Alphonse Petipa (11 March 1818--14 July (O.S. 1 July) 1910) was a French and Russian ballet dancer, pedagogue and choreographer . Petipa is considered to be the most influential ballet master and choreographer in ballet history . </P> <P> Marius Petipa is noted for his long career as Premier maître de ballet (First Ballet Master) of the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatres, making him Ballet Master and principal choreographer of the Imperial Ballet (precursor of the Kirov / Mariinsky Ballet), a position he held from 1871 until 1903 . Petipa created over fifty ballets, some of which have survived in versions either faithful to, inspired by, or reconstructed from the original . Among these works, he is most noted for The Pharaoh's Daughter (1862); Don Quixote (1869); La Bayadère (1877); Le Talisman (1889); The Sleeping Beauty (1890); The Nutcracker (likely choreographed by Lev Ivanov, perhaps with Petipa's counsel and instruction) (1892); Le Réveil de Flore (1894); La Halte de cavalerie (1896); Raymonda (1898); Les Saisons (1900), and Les Millions d'Arlequin (a.k.a. Harlequinade) (1900). </P>

Who took over the direction of the st. petersburg ballet in 1869