Ballet De Florence and Frederic

Founded in Paris in 1941 by Florence Waren (1917-2012) and Frederic Apcar (1914-2008), "Florence et Frederic" were originally a dancing duo, but in 1955 expanded into a 14-member ballet company. They supported Norman Wisdom in his London Palladium show in 1954 which was also featured in the Royal Variety Performance on 1 November 1954 before The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh. The company's most successful year was possibly 1958 with an appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in January followed by a summer visit to Rome to perform the dance interlude in Steve Reeves's popular epic Hercules Unchained (1959).