Ballet dancer, teacher and director;

Born: June 13, 1914; Died: May 4, 2013.

Frederic Franklin, who has died aged 98, was a truly charismatic British-born dancer, renowned for decades for his stylistic versatility and inexhaustible energy. He continued performing until he was in his 90s, taking small character roles, such as Friar Lawrence in Romeo and Juliet, with the American Ballet Theatre.

This life-long passion for dance seems to have taken hold of Freddie, as he was always known to friends and colleagues, at a remarkably early age. By his own account his interest in the theatre began when his parents took him, at the age of four, to see a production of Peter Pan; when he came home he stood on his bed and tried to fly. When the family acquired a gramophone there was no holding him back and he was soon studying dance and acting with teachers in his birthplace, Liverpool, becoming proficient in tap as well as classical ballet.

In time he would become a star attraction with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, under Leonide Massine. But before he joined that company, or emerged as a formidable technician (with a dashingly handsome appearance and a well-proportioned physique), the 17-year-old had already made his mark in cabaret on both sides of the English Channel.

In Paris he danced in the chorus line behind Josephine Baker but it was his piano-playing – done to pass the time between rehearsals – that led to him performing musical numbers with the legendary Mistinguett, of the "million-dollar legs". And so it might have continued, for although ballet was his great love, there were few opportunities for British male ballet dancers at home, or abroad, in the 1930s.

In 1938 everything changed when Massine spotted Franklin dancing with the Markova-Dolin Ballet. Massine not only invited him to join the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, he made the newcomer a principal dancer. Blond, blue-eyed and handsome ... Franklin had the looks to make – flutter, but he also had the talent and theatrical panache to thrill audiences and critics.

When the company reached America, his debut made him an instant hit. He would subsequently put down roots in the US, becoming one of the most enduring and important forces in the ballet community until his death (from complications associated with pneumonia) in a New York hospital.

His contribution to that Stateside dance world wasn't solely as a performer. His sharply detailed recall of neglected repertoire, together with his innate musicality and grasp of characterisation, made him an invaluable teacher, advisor and director. During his lifetime he was co-director of the Washington Ballet and co-founder and artistic director of the National Ballet of Washington, DC.

He also worked with many other leading ballet companies, including American Ballet Theatre, Chicago Ballet and Cincinnati Ballet. His first-hand experiences connected the old world of European dance with the new world of America, increasingly proving a rich (and warmly appreciated) resource for successive generations of dance-makers.

Franklin was deservedly celebrated for his brilliance across a remarkable range of solo roles and his inherent gallantry as a partner. He worked with such choreographic luminaries as Michel Fokine, Massine, Bronislava Nijinska, Frederick Ashton and George Balanchine. He also danced with some of the greatest ballerinas of the 20th century: Alicia Markova, Irina Baronova, Moira Shearer, Rosella Hightower, Maria Tallchief, Tamara Toumanova and Alicia Alonso. Perhaps his most memorable associations were with the Russian ballerina Alexandra Danilova, and the American dancer/choreographer Agnes de Mille.

The Franklin-Danilova partnership has become the stuff of ballet legend. They teamed up for everything from classical story ballets such as Giselle to the pantomime-heavy Coppelia. But they especially had the flair and brio to make comedy ballets sparkle and delight, with Massine's Gaite Parisienne a signature success. With Agnes de Mille, however, Franklin did more than entertain: he helped change the entire form and future of American ballet.

On October 16, 1942, the Ballet Russe premiered Rodeo at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York. De Mille had boldly choreographed a Wild West love story, subtitled The Courting at Burnt Ranch, to a thoroughly lively new score by Aaron Copland. Franklin had been cast as the Champion Roper to de Mille's Cowgirl. Given that she was also dancing the lead, de Mille was double nervous – and anxiously convinced the ballet wasn't ready to be seen.

Years later she recalled "the pace of the performance rushed us like a wind ... and throughout the pace which was too quick for me ... was Freddie's hand, Freddie's arm, Freddie's strong back, propelling, pushing, carrying, and Freddie's feet like bullets on the wood".

Even so, as the curtain came down de Mille was adamant it had all gone wrong, but Rodeo is now hailed as the quintessential, lingeringly influential American ballet.

Franklin was recognised long before his death as an integral, influential part of that American ballet scene. We have lost not only a genial, effervescent personality but an irreplaceable link to a remarkable chapter in dance history.

He is survived by his partner William Ausman.