Biography
Ludmilla Tchérina, born Monique Tchemerzine, was a French prima ballerina and actress. She trained with Blanche d'Alessandri, Olga Preobrajenska and others, made her professional debut as a teenager and became the youngest prima ballerina in dance history after creating the role of Juliet in Serge Lifar's Romeo and Juliet in 1942.
Tchérina appeared in films including The Red Shoes (1948) as Irina Boronskaja and The Tales of Hoffmann (1951) as Giulietta. She also worked as a choreographer, painter, sculptor and author of two novels. She received the Légion d'honneur in 1980 and died in Paris in 2004.
