Italian ballet great Carla Fracci has died, La Repubblica reported on Thursday.
The 'queen of Italian dance would have turned 85 in August.
She was born in Milan in 1936 and started out at the La Scala Theatre Ballet School at the age of 10, having Russian dancer Vera Volkova among her teachers.
She graduated in 1954, becoming soloist in 1956 and principal in 1958.
She also worked with the Royal Ballet and the American Ballet Theatre, among many other companies, and her dance partners included Rudolf Nureyev.
She went on to direct the ballet company of Naples' Teatro San Carlo, the Verona Arena Ballet Company and the Teatro Dell'Opera di Roma Ballet Company.
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