the national ballet company of Britain. It was formed from a company started in 1931 by Ninette de Valois and became the Royal Ballet in 1956. Its famous dancers in the years before World War II included Alicia Markova, Anton Dolin and Robert Helpmann, and after the war Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev. It performs both modern and traditional works. Its main base is the Royal Opera House , Covent Garden , London.
See also Sadler’s Wells .