16 Facts About Nikita Balieff

Nikita Balieff is best known as the creator and master of ceremonies of La Chauve-Souris theater group.

Nikita Balieff named the troupe La Chauve-Souris after a bat flew up out of the basement door and landed on his hat.

Nikita Balieff then went into exile in Paris and began presenting vaudeville shows there with other Russian emigres.

Nikita Balieff was noticed by the British theatrical producer Charles B Cochran, who brought the troupe to London.

Between 1922 and 1929, Nikita Balieff returned to America to tour six times, appearing on Broadway in 1922,1923,1925,1927, and 1929, with one final show billed as New Chauve-Souris in 1931.

Nikita Balieff's shows consisted of songs, dances, and sketches, most of which had been originally performed in Russia.

The Nikita Balieff vaudeville version with its popular tune was a mainstay in Chauve-Souris, and later became part of The Rockettes repertoire as well.

Nikita Balieff was known for his feigned lack of English on stage.

Nikita Balieff's company toured Europe and South Africa, appearing in major capital cities.

Nikita Balieff was married to Helena Komisarjevska, a member of one of his theatrical companies.

In 1934 Nikita Balieff created a new Chauve-Souris production, which proved to be his last theatrical venture.

Nikita Balieff appeared in the Ben Hecht-Charles MacArthur film, Once in a Blue Moon.

Nikita Balieff died of a kidney ailment on 3 September 1936, aged 63, at the Park West Hospital on West 76th Street in Manhattan.

Nikita Balieff's funeral was held at the Russian Orthodox Church of Christ the Savior on Madison Avenue.

Nikita Balieff is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Maspeth, Queens, New York.

Nikita Balieff's caricature was drawn by Alex Gard for the famed Sardi's Restaurant, where well-known performers often congregated during the Broadway season, and where many well-known stage actors' caricatures hang.