Tamara Karsavina was born in 1885 in St. Petersburg. Her father, Platon Karsavin, was the imperial troupe artist. In 1902, after graduating from the Imperial Theatre School, Karsavina joined the Mariinsky Theatre troupe as a corps de ballet dancer. She made her leading role debut in the one-act ballet "The Awakening of Flora". Over time, Karsavina began to perform leading roles the ballets "The Little Humpbacked Horse", "Giselle", "Sleeping Beauty", "Nutcracker", "Swan Lake", "Raymonda", "Carnival". The ballerina's style was distinguished by subtle artistry, softness and smooth movements. In 1909, at the invitation of Sergei Diaghilev, Karsavina started touring with the Ballets Russes. In 1910, after Anna Pavlova left the troupe, Karsavina became prima ballerina. In the same year she performed one of her most famous roles in "The Firebird". While working with choreographer Michel Fokine, Karsavina performed her roles in a duet with Vaslav Nijinsky ("The Phantom of the Rose", "Carnival", "Petrushka"). She also danced in the ballets "Cocked Hat" and "Women’s Follies" (choreography by Leonid Myasin). In Fokine's opera-ballet "The Golden Cockerel" she performed as the Shamakhan Queen (sketches for this performance, including the costume design for Karsavina’s dress, were painted by Natalya Goncharova). After the revolution, the ballerina emigrated to Great Britain with her family (her second husband was British diplomat Henry James Bruce, in 1916 their son Nikita was born). There she continued to perform. In 1930 she published a book of memoirs, "Theatre Street". In 1930-1950 Karsavina was vice-president of the Royal Academy of Dance. In the Bakhrushin Museum collection there are photos of Tamara Karsavina, archival documents, sculptural portraits of the ballerina, drawings, sketches, as well as posters and programs for the Ballets Russes and Mariinsky Theatre.