Louis-François Gosselin (28 February 1800, in Paris5 February 1860, in Paris) was a French ballet dancer who performed as a premier danseur at the Opéra de Paris and Her Majesty’s Theatre in London.
Early life Louis-François Gosselin was born on 28 February 1800 in Paris, France.L'Intermédiaire des chercheurs & curieux. (1910). (n.p.): Intermédiaire des chercheurs & curieux.
He was the brother of French ballerinas Geneviève Gosselin, Constance Gosselin (wife of the dancer Auguste-Anatole Petit), and Henriette Gosselin.Paris, C., Bayo, J. (n.d.). Diccionario biográfico de la danza. Spain: Librerías Deportivas Esteban Sanz.
Entertainment life He studied ballet with his older sister Geneviève and was formally trained by Jean-François Coulon, a ballet teacher at the ballet school of the Paris Opéra.Tomko, L. J. (1998). Proceedings Society of Dance History Scholars. United States: Society of Dance History Scholars. His stage name was M. Gosselin (or Louis Gosselin).
Performances At just 15 years old, Gosselin entered the Academie Royale de Musique (known as Paris Opéra) in 1816. He eventually became a premier danseur. He performed in Le Carnaval de Venise, a two-act ballet by Louis Milon, to music by Louis-Luc Loiseau de Persuis and Rodolphe Kreutzer, presented at the Theatre de l'Academie Royale de Musique on 22 February 1816.Ballet. (1951). United Kingdom: Ballet Publications, Limited.
He joined the cast of Jean Aumer's Les Pages du duc de Vendôme, dancing in a pas de deux on 5 September 1821.Pitou, Spire. “Gosselin, Louis F..” In (Ed.), The Paris Opéra: An encyclopedia of operas, ballets, composers, and performers (2016–). Article first published 1990. Retrieved from https://rme.rilm.org/rme/stable/526488 In 1826, he performed as "Apollon" in Mars et Venus, ou Les Filets de Vulcain, a pantomime ballet choreographed by Jean-Baptiste Blache.Tamvaco, J., Guest, I. (2000). Les cancans de l'Opéra: chroniques de l'Académie royale de musique et du théâtre, à Paris sous les deux Restaurations : première édition critique intégrale du manuscrit Les cancans de l'Opéra, ou, Le journal d'une habilleuse, de 1836 à 1848. France: CNRS editions. The role of "Han-Tsou" in Chao-Kang, choreographed by Louis Henry, was taken on by Gosselin for the ballet's premiere at the Théâtre Nautique on 16 October 1834.Chao-Kang - Spectacle - 1834. (n.d.). data.bnf.fr. https://data.bnf.fr/fr/ark:/12148/cb396847753
Gosselin made appearances in London, England, as a dancer in the Ballet of Her Majesty's Theatre between 1827 and 1852.Haine, M. (1995). 400 lettres de musiciens au Musée royal de Mariemont. Belgium: Mardaga. In 1830, he danced in a revival of Le Carnaval de Venise at the theatre.Reade, B. (1967). BALLET DESIGNS AND ILLUSTRATIONS.. United Kingdom: H.M. Stationery Office. He later made an appearance in La Esmeralda on 9 March 1844, playing the role of "Claude Frollo".Phaidon Book of the Ballet. (1981). Italy: Phaidon. The 1846 ballet Catarina, or La Fille du Bandit featured him in the role of "Salvator Rosa," with choreography by Jules Perrot and music composed by Cesare Pugni. During the 1848 season, working in the theatre's ballet department, he was the sous-maître de ballet (assistant ballet master) to Paul Taglioni and Jules Perrot.The Edinburgh Review: Or Critical Journal. (1848). United Kingdom: A. Constable. On 15 July 1850, he choreographed a divertissement titled Les Délices du sérail which was created for Cuban singer Maria Martinez.Gautier, T. (1989). Correspondance générale. Switzerland: Librairie Droz. Gosselin choreographed the work to a score composed by Cesare Pugni.And, M. (1958). Gönlü Yüce Türk: yüzyillar boyunca bale eserlerinde Türkler. Türkiye: Dost Yayinevi. In 1851, he worked with Mlle Amalia Ferraris on a choreographic segment he arranged.The Musical World. (1851). United Kingdom: J. Alfredo Novello.
Upon returning to Paris, Gosselin taught at the Opéra's ballet school from 1853 to 1860. He worked with dancers such as Fanny Cerrito, Carolina Rosati, and Nadezhda Konstantinovna Bogdanova.
Death Gosselin died on 5 February 1860 in Paris, France.BnF Catalogue général. (n.d.-b). Retrieved from https://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb14850905b
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