Early life Cranko was born to Herbert and Grace Cranko in
Rustenburg in the former province of
Transvaal,
Union of South Africa. As a child, he would put on puppet shows as a creative outlet. Cranko received his early ballet training in Cape Town under the leading South African ballet teacher and director,
Dulcie Howes, of the
University of Cape Town Ballet School. In 1945 he choreographed his first work (using Stravinsky's Suite from ''
L'Histoire du soldat'') for the Cape Town Ballet Club. He moved to London, studying with the
Sadler's Wells Ballet School (later called the Royal Ballet) in 1946 and dancing his first role with the Sadler's Wells Ballet in November 1947.
London Cranko collaborated with the designer
John Piper on
Sea Change, performed at the
Gaiety Theatre, Dublin, in July 1949. They created a season of ballet at the
Kenton Theatre,
Henley, in 1952 and collaborated again for Sadler's Wells Ballet on
The Shadow, which opened on 3 March 1953. This period marked a transition in Cranko's career from dancer to full-time choreographer, with his last performance for the Sadler's Wells Ballet taking place in April 1950. At 23 years of age, he was appointed as resident choreographer for Sadler's Wells Theatre Ballet's 1950–51 season. For the company's
Festival of Britain season in 1951 Cranko choreographed
Harlequin in April, a "pantomine [sic] with divertissements" to music by
Richard Arnell, as well as the comic
ballet Pineapple Poll, to the music of
Arthur Sullivan (newly out of copyright) arranged by the conductor
Charles Mackerras. Cranko wrote and developed a musical revue
Cranks, which opened in London in December 1955, moved to
St Martin's Theatre in the West End the following March, and ran for 223 performances. With music by
John Addison, its cast of four featured the singers
Anthony Newley,
Annie Ross, Hugh Bryant and the dancer Gilbert Vernon; it transferred to
Broadway at the
Bijou Theatre. An original cast CD has been released. Cranko followed the format of
Cranks with a new revue
New Cranks opening at the
Lyric Theatre Hammersmith on 26 April 1960 with music by David Lee and a cast including
Gillian Lynne,
Carole Shelley and
Bernard Cribbins, but it failed to have the same impact. When the work had its London premiere the following year at Covent Garden, Cranko was not invited to direct, and
Sir John Gielgud was brought in.
Stuttgart Prosecuted for homosexual activity, Cranko left the UK for Stuttgart, and in 1961 was appointed director of the
Stuttgart Ballet, At Cranko's instigation the company established its own ballet school in 1971; it was renamed the John Cranko Schule in his honour in 1974. His assistant and choreologist
Georgette Tsinguirides preserved his works in
Benesh Movement Notation. ==Death and legacy==