Training - The Early Years
Patricia Ryan, née Kinneen, was born in London in 1923, daughter of a second-generation Irish mother Christiana Kelly and an English father. At age three she travelled with her younger brother, mother and Irish stepfather to San Francisco where they lived for two years. During this period Patricia began infant dance classes in Santa Monica and her passion for dance and music emerged. She later recalled how her mother had spoken of the famous ballerina Pavlova, who became a dream idol for the young Patricia.
In 1928 - Patricia returned to London and attended elementary classes with Miss Barren’s school in Greek dancing and dexterity exercises. She entered dance competitions showing great performance promise. At aged six, a structured and physical graded ballet school was recommended so she was enrolled as a student in Olive Ripman’s school of dance London, which later evolved into the famous ‘Arts Ed’ performing arts school. She began classical ballet at age nine and performed demonstrations for Cyril W. Beaumont founder of the Cecchetti Society.
Andre Eglevsky
Cape Town 1936 -
In 1936 Patricia moved with her family to Cape Town, South Africa where her dance classes continued in the Dulcie Howes dance School. At thirteen years old she was selected to dance a presentation for Prime Minister Jan Smuts.
International ballet productions visited Cape Town and this was where the young Patricia first saw the Ballet Russes. It was a revelation to her to see acclaimed principals Tatiana Riabouchinska, David Lichine, Tamara Toumanova and Andre Eglevsky in ballets such as Scheherazade, Giselle, Spectre de la rose and Stravinsky’s Petruska, with sets designed by Bakst.
These experiences were a turning point for the impressionable thirteen year old and shaped the technical choices in her dance career. Dancer Andre Eglevsky’s performance in Petrushka left a lasting impact.
When Patricia returned to London, Olive Ripman wanted her to enter Sadlers Wells school under Ninette de Valois but Patricia’s heart was sold, and she passionately announced that she wanted to leave the Royal Academy of Dance system to join a Russian ballet school.
In search of a Russian school of Ballet, Patricia attended an open class under the teaching of Nadine Nicolaeva Legat who had been ballerina of the state theatres of Moscow and wife of former Russian dancer and teacher Nicolai Legat.
By coincidence Andre Eglevsky, - who Patricia had so admired in Cape Town, was demonstrating sequences of pirouettes in a master class on that day. This surprising encounter sealed her decision to join Nadine Legat’s school. For the next four years she commuted by train every week day from the family home in Bromley to central London, where she trained with Legat in Collet House and other locations.
The classes were physically strenuous in both morning and afternoon daily. Moira Shearer (The Red Shoes) was a fellow dance student.
During these years as a young teenager, Patricia paid 10 shilllings in Covent Garden to see as many ballet performances as she could, with special enthusiasm for Russian productions, most often with standing room only. She saw the first night of Fokine’s ballet of Paganini, Massine’s ballet of Beethovens 7th Symphony, Gaiety Parisienne, Stravinsky’s Petrushka, L’Oiseau de Feu, Les Sylphides, Massine’s La Boutique Fantasque and more.
This period would be influential in her future decisions as an artistic director in dance, music, makeup and costume design.
Patricia auditioned for West End dance parts and musical shows and secured a part in a Christmas play in Wyndmans theatre earning £12 shillings 6 pence a week two matinees Wednesday and Saturday with evening performance every night.
Years later in Ireland she was dismayed when told that there had been offers of other lead roles but that her mother thought her too young to perform, believing the audition experience alone would stand to her later in life.
Ballet Russes - War - Ireland
Leonid Massine
London 1939 -
Dancer Barbara Vernon Gregory, wife of John Gregory, believed Patricia to be talented and drew the attention of Russian choreographer Leonid Massine.
In August 1939 a proposition was being put in place to get Patricia to the South of France and on to Monte Carlo to train with the Ballet Russes de Monte Carlo under Massine eventually to turn professional.
The family were on holiday on the Sussex coast when talk of war was imminent, on return to London news that Poland was invaded and world war two declared. Patricia’s mother concerned for safety did not want to let her daughter leave for France un chaperoned.
Hastily she decided to leave England with her Irish husband and take the family to live in Ireland.
Legat implored that Patricia be left to continue her dancing but her Mother was unremitting.
These decisions and circumstances had detrimental consequences to her career as a dancer.
After a perilous journey to Ireland, the family then with four children stayed with relatives in Galway then eventually settled in Dublin. Dance classes were arranged with Sarah Payne who taught in the Royal Academy of Dance tradition which were held at the Abbey Theatre where the Peacock theatre now stands.
Patricia then joined and performed in The Irish Ballet Club under Cepta Cullen for a year. The teachings and dance techniques were not to the rigour of the Russian approach and disciplines that she was trained in and repertoires were limited. Methods from London to Dublin made the adjustment difficult.
I found the classes amateur, there was no passion, no continuity. I couldn't get my feelings up for it”
-Patricia Collins (formerly Ryan)
Performing with The Irish Ballet Club where she danced the lead in the Ballet ‘Aisling’ in the Gaiety Theatre with press reviews stating her as the most professional dancer on stage with potential to be a great dancer for Ireland, despite this she became despondent and fell unwell. She later described this period leading to a breakdown. War gripped Europe, missing her home life in London and her Russian teacher she stopped dancing after over 15 years of training.