Yvette ChauvirĂ© (22 April 1917 â 19 October 2016) was a French prima ballerina and actress. She is often described as France's greatest ballerina, and was the coach of prima ballerinas Sylvie Guillem and Marie-Claude Pietragalla. She was awarded the LĂ©gion d'Honneur in 1964. Yvonne ChauvirĂ© was born in Paris on 22 April 1917. Aged 10, in 1927, she entered the Paris Opera Ballet school, and at the age of 12