George Balanchine (; Various sources: * * * * born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze;, : April 30, 1983) was a Georgian-American ballet choreographer, recognized as one of the most influential choreographers of the 20th-century. Styled as the father of American ballet, he co-founded the

New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company's fir ...

and remained its artistic director for more than 35 years.Joseph Horowitz (2008)
''Artists in Exile: How Refugees from 20th-century War and Revolution Transformed the American Performing Arts.''
HarperCollins. His choreography is characterized by plotless ballets with minimal costume and décor, performed to classical and neoclassical music. Born in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

, Russia, Balanchine took the standards and technique from his time at the

Imperial Ballet School The Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet is a school of classical ballet in St Petersburg, Russia. Established in 1738 during the reign of Empress Anna, the academy was known as the Imperial Ballet School until the Soviet era, when, after a brief ...

and fused it with other schools of movement that he had adopted during his tenure on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

and in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

, creating his signature "neoclassical style". He was a choreographer known for his

musicality Musicality (''music -al -ity'') is "sensitivity to, knowledge of, or talent for music" or "the quality or state of being musical", and is used to refer to specific if vaguely defined qualities in pieces and/or genres of music, such as melodiousnes ...

; he expressed music with dance and worked extensively with leading composers of his time like

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ( – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century c ...

. Balanchine was invited to America in 1933 by a young arts patron named

Lincoln Kirstein Lincoln Edward Kirstein (May 4, 1907 – January 5, 1996) was an American writer, impresario, art connoisseur, philanthropist, and cultural figure in New York City, noted especially as co-founder of the New York City Ballet. He developed and su ...

, and together they founded the

School of American Ballet The School of American Ballet (SAB) is the associate school of the New York City Ballet, a ballet company based at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. The school trains students from the age of six, with professional voc ...

in 1934 as well as the New York City Ballet in 1948.

Early life and family

Balanchine was born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

, Russian Empire, son of Georgian opera singer and composer

Meliton Balanchivadze Meliton Balanchivadze ( ka, მელიტონ ბალანჩივაძე; 24 December 1862 – 21 December 1937) was a Georgian opera singer, composer and a member of Georgia's cultural scene, both under the Russian Empire and during ...

, one of the founders of the

Tbilisi Opera and Ballet Theatre The Georgian National Opera and Ballet Theater of Tbilisi ( ka, თბილისის ოპერისა და ბალეტის სახელმწიფო აკადემიური თეატრი, tr), formerly known as ...

. His father was later the Minister of Culture of the

Georgian Democratic Republic The Democratic Republic of Georgia (DRG; ka, საქართველოს დემოკრატიული რესპუბლიკა, tr) was the first modern establishment of a republic of Georgia, which existed from May 1918 to ...

, which became independent in 1918 but was later forcibly incorporated into the Soviet Union.''New York Times'' article by Anna Kisselgoff
June 29, 2004 The rest of the Georgian side of Balanchine's family consisted largely of artists and soldiers. Little is known of Balanchine's Russian, maternal side. His mother, Meliton's second wife, Maria Nikolayevna Vasilyeva, is said to be the daughter of Nikolai von Almedingen, a German. He later left Russia and abandoned his family, causing Maria to take her mother's name. Maria was fond of ballet and viewed it as a form of social advancement from the lower reaches of Saint Petersburg society. She was eleven years younger than Meliton and rumored to have been his former housekeeper, although "she had at least some culture in her background" as she could play piano well. Maria also worked at a bank. Although she loved ballet, she wanted her son to join the military. This was a difficult topic to enforce in the family because not only was the mother artistic, George's father was also very talented at playing the piano. Many believe that because his father was very invested in the arts, Balanchine's career of being a businessman failed. Balanchine had three other siblings. His brother Andrei Balanchivadze became a well-known Georgian composer like their father. Even after immigrating to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, Balanchine tried to stay connected to his Georgian roots. He engaged across the

Iron Curtain The Iron Curtain was the political and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. On the east side of the Iron Curtain were countries connected to the So ...

with Georgian artists, who admired him.

Career

Early auditions and training

As a child, Balanchine was not particularly interested in ballet, but his mother insisted that he audition with his sister Tamara, who shared her mother's interest in the art. Balanchine's brother Andria Balanchivadze followed their father's love for music and became a composer in Soviet Georgia. Tamara's life as a dancer, however, would be cut short by her death in unknown circumstances as she was trying to escape to Georgia on a train from the

Siege of Leningrad The siege of Leningrad was a Siege, military blockade undertaken by the Axis powers against the city of Leningrad (present-day Saint Petersburg) in the Soviet Union on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front of World War II from 1941 t ...

during World War II. Based on his audition, during 1913 (at age nine), Balanchine relocated from rural Finland to Saint Petersburg and was accepted into the

, principal school of the

Imperial Ballet The Mariinsky Ballet () is the resident classical ballet company of the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in the 18th century and originally known as the Imperial Russian Ballet, the Mariinsky Ballet is one of the world's ...

, where he was a student of

Pavel Gerdt Pavel Andreyevich Gerdt (), also known as Paul Gerdt (22 November 1844, near Saint Petersburg, Russia – 12 August 1917, in Vamaloki, Finland, Russian Republic), was the ''Premier Danseur Noble'' of the Mariinsky Ballet, Imperial Ballet, the Bol ...

and Samuil Andrianov (Gerdt's son-in-law).Joseph Horowitz (2008). At the Mariinsky Theater Ballet, he made his debut as a cupid in Sleeping Beauty. ''Artists in Exile: How Refugees from Twentieth-Century War and Revolution Transformed the American Performing Arts''
, New York: HarperCollins; Balanchine studied dance at the Mariinsky School & Theater until it closed down in 1917 due to government decree. His taking ballet here could have been viewed as a convenience to the Balanchivadze family, because this is where his father composed music. After the Revolution, this theater was transferred to the People's Enlightenment Commissariat and became property of the state. The Theater reopened in 1918; two years later it was renamed as the State Academic Theater of Opera and Ballet. Balanchine had begun to choreograph and mounted some new and experimental ballets for the Mikhailovsky Theatre in

Petrograd Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

(as the city was renamed. It later was renamed again as

Leningrad Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

.) Among them were ''Le Boeuf sur le toit'' (1920), by

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau ( , ; ; 5 July 1889 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, film director, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost avant-garde artists of the 20th-c ...

and music by

Darius Milhaud Darius Milhaud (, ; 4 September 1892 – 22 June 1974) was a French composer, conductor, and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as ''The Group of Six''—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His composition ...

. He also created a piece for ''Caesar and Cleopatra'' by Irish playwright

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 188 ...

. After graduating in 1921, Balanchine enrolled in the Petrograd Conservatory while working in the

corps de ballet In ballet, the ''corps de ballet'' (; French language, French for "body of the little dance") is the group of ballet dancer, dancers who are not principal dancers or Soloist (ballet), soloists. They are a permanent part of the ballet company and ...

at the State Academic Theater for Opera and Ballet. (This was formerly the State Theater of Opera and Ballet and known as the Mariinsky Ballet). His studies at the conservatory included advanced piano, music theory, counterpoint, harmony, and composition. Balanchine graduated from the conservatory in 1923, and danced as a member of the corps until 1924. While still in his teens, Balanchine choreographed his first work, a

pas de deux In ballet, a ( French, literally "step of two") is a dance duet in which two dancers, typically a male and a female, perform ballet steps together. The ''pas de deux'' is characteristic of classical ballet and can be found in many well-known ...

named ''La Nuit'' (1920, music by

Anton Rubinstein Anton Grigoryevich Rubinstein (; ) was a Russian pianist, composer and conductor who founded the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. He was the elder brother of Nikolai Rubinstein, who founded the Moscow Conservatory. As a pianist, Rubinstein ran ...

). a piece which The school of directors did not approve of or like this work. Balanchine worked at his choreography in an experimental way during his evenings. He and his colleagues eventually performed this piece at the State School of Ballet. This was followed by another duet, ''Enigma'', with the dancers in bare feet rather than

ballet shoes A ballet shoe, or ballet slipper, is a lightweight shoe designed specifically for ballet dancing. It may be made from soft leather, canvas, or satin, and has flexible, thin full or split soles. Traditionally, women wear pink shoes and men wear w ...

. While teaching at the

Mariinsky Ballet The Mariinsky Ballet () is the resident classical ballet company of the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in the 18th century and originally known as the Imperial Russian Ballet, the Mariinsky Ballet is one of the world's ...

, he met Tamara Geva, his future wife. In 1923, with Geva and fellow dancers, Balanchine formed a small ensemble, ''The Young Ballet''.

Ballets Russes

In 1924, ''the Young Ballet'' managed to obtain a permission to leave Soviet Russia and tour around Europe. Balanchine with his wife, Tamara Geva, and several other dancers (

Alexandra Danilova Aleksandra Dionisyevna Danilova (''Russian'': Александра Дионисьевна Данилова; November 20, 1903 – July 13, 1997) was a Russian-born prima ballerina, who became an American citizen. In 1989, she was recognized f ...

, Nicholas Efimov) went to Germany, but their performances in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

received a chilly response. ''The Young Ballet'' had to perform in small cities of the

Rhine Province The Rhine Province (), also known as Rhenish Prussia () or synonymous with the Rhineland (), was the westernmost Provinces of Prussia, province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia, within the German Reich, from 1822 to 1946. ...

such as

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden (; ) is the capital of the German state of Hesse, and the second-largest Hessian city after Frankfurt am Main. With around 283,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 24th-largest city. Wiesbaden form ...

Bad Ems Bad Ems () is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Rhein-Lahn rural district and is well known as a spa on the river Lahn. Bad Ems was the seat of Bad Ems collective municipality, which has been merged i ...

, and

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; ; ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it joins at Koblenz. A sm ...

. Geva wrote later, that in that time they had to dance 'in small dark places, in summer theaters and private ballrooms, in beer gardens and before mental patients'. They could barely afford paying for hotels and often had only tea for a meal. In London, they had two weeks of very unsuccessful performances, when the audience met them with dead silence. With expiring visas, they were not welcome in any other European country. The young dancers settled in Paris, where there was a large Russian emigre community. At this time, the Russian impresario

Sergei Diaghilev Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev ( ; rus, Серге́й Па́влович Дя́гилев, , sʲɪrˈɡʲej ˈpavləvʲɪdʑ ˈdʲæɡʲɪlʲɪf; 19 August 1929), also known as Serge Diaghilev, was a Russian art critic, patron, ballet impresario an ...

invited Balanchine to join the

Ballets Russes The Ballets Russes () was an itinerant ballet company begun in Paris that performed between 1909 and 1929 throughout Europe and on tours to North and South America. The company never performed in Russia, where the Russian Revolution, Revolution ...

as a choreographer. Balanchine was 21 and became the main choreographer for the most famous ballet company in Europe. Sergei Diaghilev insisted that Balanchine change his name from Balanchivadze to Balanchine. Diaghilev soon promoted Balanchine to

ballet master A ballet master (also balletmaster, ballet mistress, ''premier maître de ballet'' or ''premier maître de ballet en chef'') is an employee of a ballet company who is responsible for the level of competence of the dancers in their company. In mo ...

of the company and encouraged his choreography. Between 1924 and Diaghilev's death in 1929, Balanchine created ten ballets, as well as lesser works. During these years, he worked with rising young composers such as

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''. , group=n ( – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who l ...

Erik Satie Eric Alfred Leslie Satie (born 17 May 18661 July 1925), better known as Erik Satie, was a French composer and pianist. The son of a French father and a British mother, he studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, Paris Conservatoire but was an undi ...

, and

Maurice Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism in music, Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composer ...

, and artists who designed sets and costumes, such as

Pablo Picasso Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, Ceramic art, ceramicist, and Scenic ...

Georges Rouault Georges-Henri Rouault (; 27 May 1871, Paris - 13 February 1958, Paris) was a French painter, draughtsman, and printmaker, whose work is often associated with Fauvism and Expressionism. Childhood and education Rouault was born into a poor famil ...

, and

Henri Matisse Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual arts, visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a drawing, draughtsman, printmaking, printmaker, ...

, creating new works that combined all the arts. Ballets Russes Apollon 1928

Among his new works, during 1928 in Paris, Balanchine premiered ''

Apollon musagète ''Apollo'' (originally ''Apollon musagète'' and variously known as ''Apollo musagetes'', ''Apolo Musageta'', and ''Apollo, Leader of the Muses'') is a neoclassical ballet in two '' tableaux'' composed between 1927 and 1928 by Igor Stravinsky. ...

'' (Apollo and the muses) in a collaboration with Stravinsky. This was one of his most innovative ballets, combining

classical ballet Classical ballet is any of the traditional, formal styles of ballet that exclusively employ classical ballet technique. It is known for its aesthetics and rigorous technique (such as en pointe, pointe work, turnout (ballet), turnout of the legs, ...

and classical Greek myth and images with jazz movement. He described it as "the turning point in my life". ''Apollo'' is regarded as the original

neoclassical ballet Neoclassical ballet is the style of 20th-century classical ballet exemplified by the works of George Balanchine. The term "neoclassical ballet" appears in the 1920s with Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, in response to the excesses of romanti ...

. ''Apollo'' brought the male dancer to the forefront, giving him two solos within the ballet. ''Apollo'' is known for its minimalism, using simple costumes and sets. This allowed the audience not to be distracted from the movement. Balanchine considered music to be the primary influence on choreography, as opposed to the narrative. Due to a serious knee injury, Balanchine had to limit his dancing, effectively ending his own performance career. So he decided to focus all his attention on choreography. After Diaghilev's death, the Ballets Russes went bankrupt. To earn money, Balanchine began to stage dances for Charles B. Cochran's revues and Sir Oswald Stoll's variety shows in London. He was retained by the

Royal Danish Ballet The Royal Danish Ballet ( Danish: ''Den Kongelige Ballet'') is an internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Danish Theatre in Kongens Nytorv, Copenhagen, Denmark. It is one of the oldest ballet companies in the world a ...

in Copenhagen as a guest ballet master. Among his new works for the company were '' Danses Concertantes'', a pure dance piece to music by Stravinsky, and ''Night Shadow'', revived under the title ''

La Sonnambula ''La sonnambula'' (; ''The Sleepwalker'') is an opera semiseria in two acts, with music in the ''bel canto'' tradition by Vincenzo Bellini set to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a scenario for a ''ballet-pantomime'' written by Eu ...

''. In 1931, with the help of financier Serge Denham, René Blum and Colonel

Wassily de Basil Vassily Grigorievich Voskresensky (; 27 July 1951), usually referred to as Colonel Wassily de Basil, was a Russian ballet impresario. De Basil was born in Kaunas, Russian Empire (now in Lithuania), in 1888 (his year of birth is given alternately ...

formed the Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo,Amanda
"Ballets Russes"
''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

'': July 17, 2005 a successor to Ballets Russes. The new company hired

Leonide Massine Leonide or Léonide is a masculine given name which may refer to: * Leonide or Leonid of Georgia (1861–1921), Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia * Leonid Berman (1896–1976), Russian Neo-romantic painter and theater and opera designer * Léoni ...

and Balanchine as choreographers. Featured dancers included

David Lichine David Lichine (; 25 October 1910 – 26 June 1972) was a Russian-American ballet dancer and choreographer. He had an international career as a performer, ballet master, and choreographer, staging works for many ballet companies and for several Hol ...

and

Tatiana Riabouchinska Tatiana Mikhailovna Riabouchinska (, 23 May 191724 August 2000) was a Russian American prima ballerina and teacher. Famous at age 14 as one of the three "Baby Ballerinas" of the Original Ballet Russe, Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in the 1930 ...

. In 1933, without consulting Blum, Col. de Basil dropped Balanchine after one year,Homans, Jennifer
"René Blum: Life of a Dance Master,"
''The New York Times'' (July 8, 2011). – ostensibly because he thought that audiences preferred the works choreographed by Massine. Librettist

Boris Kochno Boris Evgenievich Kochno or Kokhno (; 3 January 1904 – 8 December 1990) was a Russian poet, dancer, and librettist. Early life Kochno was born in Moscow, Russia, on 3 January 1904. His father served as a colonel in the hussars. He studied at ...

was also let go, while dancer

Tamara Toumanova Tamara Toumanova ( ka, თამარა თუმანოვა; 2 March 1919 – 29 May 1996) was a Russian-born Georgian-American prima ballerina and actress. A child of exiles in Paris after the Russian Revolution of 1917, she made her ...

(a strong admirer of Balanchine) left the company when Balanchine was fired. Balanchine and Kochno immediately founded

Les Ballets 1933 Les Ballets 1933 was a ballet company started by Boris Kochno and George Balanchine, which Balanchine used to create new works that were completely his own, set to music that no one had yet choreographed. The company ran for less than four weeks ...

. Kochno, Diaghilev's former secretary and companion, served as artistic advisor. The company was financed by

Edward James Edward Frank Willis James (16 August 1907 – 2 December 1984) was a British poet known for his patronage of the surrealist art movement. Early life and marriage James was born on 16 August 1907, the only son of William James (who had inheri ...

, a British poet and ballet patron. The company lasted only a couple of months during 1933, performing in Paris and London. The worldwide

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

made arts more difficult to fund. Balanchine created several new works, including collaborations with composers

Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (; ; March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for hi ...

Henri Sauguet Henri-Pierre Sauguet-Poupard (18 May 1901 – 22 June 1989) was a French composer. Born in Bordeaux, he adopted his mother's maiden name as part of his professional pseudonym. His output includes operas, ballets, four symphonies (1945, 1949, ...

and designer

Pavel Tchelitchew Pavel Fyodorovich Tchelitchew ( ; ) ( – 31 July 1957) was a Russian-born surrealism, surrealist painter, set designer and costume designer. Early life Tchelitchew was born to an aristocratic family of landowners and was educated by private ...

United States

New York State Theater by David Shankbone

Balanchine moved to the United States in 1933 at the behest of

. Balanchine insisted that his first project in the United States would be to establish a ballet school, because he wanted to develop dancers who had strong technique along with his particular style. Compared to his classical training, he thought American dancers lacked strength and skills. With the assistance of Lincoln Kirstein and Edward M.M. Warburg, the

opened to students on January 2, 1934, less than three months after Balanchine arrived in the U.S. Later that year, Balanchine had his students perform in a recital, where they premiered his new work ''

Serenade In music, a serenade (; also sometimes called a serenata, from the Italian) is a musical composition or performance delivered in honour of someone or something. Serenades are typically calm, light pieces of music. The term comes from the Ital ...

'' to music by

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

at Woodlands, the Warburg summer estate. It became part of the Canon of the company. In 1948, Balanchine and Kirstein founded the

. The school of American Ballet became and is now a training ground for dancers of New York City Ballet and companies from all over the world. Between his ballet activities in the 1930s and 1940s, Balanchine also choreographed Broadway musicals written by such notables as

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway theatre, Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers wa ...

Lorenz Hart Lorenz Milton Hart (May 2, 1895 – November 22, 1943) was an American lyricist and half of the Broadway songwriting team Rodgers and Hart. Some of his more famous lyrics include "Blue Moon"; " The Lady Is a Tramp"; "Manhattan"; " Bewitched, Bo ...

and

Vernon Duke Vernon Duke ( 16 January 1969) was a Russian-born American composer and songwriter who also wrote under his birth name, Vladimir Dukelsky. He is best known for " Taking a Chance on Love," with lyrics by Ted Fetter and John Latouche (1940), "I ...

. Among them, Balanchine choreographed Rodgers and Hart's ''

On Your Toes ''On Your Toes'' (1936) is a musical with a book by Richard Rodgers, George Abbott, and Lorenz Hart, music by Rodgers, and lyrics by Hart. It was adapted into a film in 1939. While teaching music at Knickerbocker University, Phil "Junior" Dol ...

'' in 1936, where his program billing specified "Choreography by George Balanchine" as opposed to the usual billing of "Dances staged by". This marked the first time in Broadway history that a dance-maker received choreography billing for a Broadway musical. ''On Your Toes'' featured two ballets: '' La Princesse Zenobia'' and ''

Slaughter on Tenth Avenue ''Slaughter on Tenth Avenue'' is a ballet with music by Richard Rodgers and choreography by George Balanchine. It occurs near the end of Rodgers and Hart's 1936 Broadway musical comedy ''On Your Toes''. ''Slaughter'' is the story of a hoofer wh ...

'', in which a tap dancer falls in love with a dance-hall girl. Balanchine's choreography in musicals was unique at the time because it furthered the plot of the story.

Relocation to West Coast

Portrait of Ringling Circus choreographer George Balanchine

Balanchine relocated his company to

in 1938, where he rented a white two-story house with "Kolya", Nicholas Kopeikine, his "rehearsal pianist and lifelong colleague", on North Fairfax Avenue not far from

Hollywood Boulevard Hollywood Boulevard is a major east–west street in Los Angeles, California. It runs through the Hollywood, East Hollywood, Little Armenia, Thai Town, and Los Feliz districts. Its western terminus is at Sunset Plaza Drive in the Hollyw ...

. Balanchine created dances for five movies, all of which featured

Vera Zorina Vera Zorina (January 2, 1917 – April 9, 2003), born Eva Brigitta Hartwig, was a German-Norwegian ballerina, theatre and film actress, and choreographer, chiefly remembered for her films choreographed by her husband George Balanchine. They ...

, whom he met on the set of ''

The Goldwyn Follies ''The Goldwyn Follies'' is a 1938 Technicolor film written by Ben Hecht, Sid Kuller, Sam Perrin and Arthur Phillips, with music by George Gershwin, Vernon Duke, and Ray Golden, and lyrics by Ira Gershwin and Sid Kuller. ''The Goldwyn Follies'' ...

'' and who subsequently became his second wife. He reconvened the company as the American Ballet Caravan and toured with it throughout

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

and

South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...

America, but it folded after several years. From 1944 to 1946, during and after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Balanchine served as resident choreographer for Blum & Massine's new iteration of

Ballet Russe de Monte-Carlo The company Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo (with a plural name) was formed in 1932 after the death of Sergei Diaghilev and the demise of Ballets Russes. Its director was Wassily de Basil (usually referred to as Colonel W. de Basil), and its ...

Return to New York

Soon Balanchine formed a new dance company,

Ballet Society Ballet Society is a non-profit educational institution founded in 1946 by Lincoln Kirstein and George Balanchine. At its founding, Balanchine was the Artistic Director and Kirstein served as the Secretary. The president of Ballet Society is Nan ...

, again with the generous help of Lincoln Kirstein. He continued to work with contemporary composers such as

Paul Hindemith Paul Hindemith ( ; ; 16 November 189528 December 1963) was a German and American composer, music theorist, teacher, violist and conductor. He founded the Amar Quartet in 1921, touring extensively in Europe. As a composer, he became a major advo ...

, from whom he commissioned a score in 1940 for ''

The Four Temperaments ''The Four Temperaments'' or Theme and Four Variations (''The Four Temperaments'') is an orchestral work and ballet by Paul Hindemith. Although it was originally conceived as a ballet for Léonide Massine, the score was ultimately completed a ...

''. First performed on November 20, 1946, this modernist work was one of his early abstract and spare ballets, angular and very different in movement. After several successful performances, the most notable featuring the ballet ''

Orpheus In Greek mythology, Orpheus (; , classical pronunciation: ) was a Thracians, Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet. He was also a renowned Ancient Greek poetry, poet and, according to legend, travelled with Jason and the Argonauts in se ...

'' created in collaboration with Stravinsky and sculptor and designer

Isamu Noguchi was an American artist, furniture designer and Landscape architecture, landscape architect whose career spanned six decades from the 1920s. Known for his sculpture and public artworks, Noguchi also designed stage sets for various Martha Grah ...

, the City of New York offered the company residency at

New York City Center New York City Center (previously known as the Mecca Temple, City Center of Music and Drama, and the New York City Center 55th Street Theater) is a performing arts center at 131 West 55th Street (Manhattan), 55th Street between Sixth Avenue, Six ...

. In 1954, Balanchine created his version of ''

The Nutcracker ''The Nutcracker'' (, ), Opus number, Op. 71, is an 1892 two-act classical ballet (conceived as a '; ) by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, set on Christmas Eve at the foot of a Christmas tree in a child's imagination featuring a Nutcracker doll. Th ...

'', in which he played the mime role of Drosselmeyer. The company has since performed the ballet every year in New York City during the

Christmas season The Christmas season or the festive season, also known as the holiday season or the holidays, is an annual period generally spanning from November or December to early January. Incorporating Christmas Day and New Year's Day, the various celebrat ...

. His other famous ballets created for New York companies include ''Firebird'', ''Allegro Brilliante'', ''

Agon () is the Greek personification for a conflict, struggle or contest, describing a concept of the same name. This could be a contest in athletics, in chariot or horse racing, or in music or literature at a public festival in ancient Greece. i ...

'', '' The Seven Deadly Sins'', and ''

Episodes Episodes may refer to: * Episode, a part of a dramatic work * Episodes (TV series), ''Episodes'' (TV series), a British/American television sitcom which premiered in 2011 * Episodes (journal), ''Episodes'' (journal), a geological science journal ...

''.

Suzanne Farrell and George Balanchine NYWTS

In 1967, Balanchine's ballet ''

Jewels A gemstone (also called a fine gem, jewel, precious stone, semiprecious stone, or simply gem) is a piece of mineral crystal which, when cut or polished, is used to make jewellery, jewelry or other adornments. Certain Rock (geology), rocks (such ...

'' displayed specific characteristics of Balanchine's choreography. The corps de ballet dancers execute rapid footwork and precise movements. The choreography is difficult to execute and all dancers must do their jobs to hold the integrity of the piece. Balanchine's use of musicality can also be seen in this work. His other famous works with New York City Ballet are popular today and are performed in the Lincoln Center by New York City Ballet: '' Mozartiana'', ''

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

'', ''

'', and ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a Comedy (drama), comedy play written by William Shakespeare in about 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One s ...

''.

Death

In his last years, Balanchine had

angina pectoris Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, usually caused by insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium). It is most commonly a symptom of coronary artery disease. Angina is typically the result of part ...

and underwent

heart bypass surgery Coronary artery bypass surgery, also known as coronary artery bypass graft (CABG, pronounced "cabbage"), is a surgical procedure to treat coronary artery disease (CAD), the buildup of plaques in the arteries of the heart. It can relieve chest p ...

. After years of illness, Balanchine died on April 30, 1983, aged 79, in Manhattan from

Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (CJD) is an incurable, always fatal neurodegenerative disease belonging to the transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) group. Early symptoms include memory problems, behavioral changes, poor coordination, visu ...

. This was diagnosed only after his death. He first showed symptoms during 1978 when he began losing his balance while dancing. As the disease progressed, his equilibrium, eyesight, and hearing deteriorated. By 1982, he was incapacitated. The night of his death, the company went on with its scheduled performance, which included ''Divertimento No. 15'' and '' Symphony in C'' at Lincoln Center.

Clement Crisp Clement Andrew Crisp OBE (21 September 1926 – 1 March 2022) was a British dance critic. He served as dance critic for the ''Financial Times'' from 1956 to 2020. Life and career Crisp was born in Romford, Essex, in 1926, although for many years ...

, one of the many writers who eulogized Balanchine, assessed his contribution: "It is hard to think of the ballet world without the colossal presence of George Balanchine ..." In his lifetime he created 465 works. Balanchine extended the traditions of

. His choreography remains the same to the present day and the School of American Ballet still uses his teaching technique. As one of the 20th century's best-known choreographers, his style and vision of ballet is interesting to many generations of choreographers. Having kept his faith, he had a

Russian Orthodox The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...

funeral. He was interred at the Oakland Cemetery at Sag Harbor, Suffolk County, New York.

was also later interred here.

The Balanchine Style

Starting out his professional career with opera ballets, Balanchine did not take classicism as the a priori theory, but instead searched for his own style through the 1930s. It is widely accepted that Balanchine had established the American ballet style, and the Neoclassical style that Balanchine consolidated represents the American spirit.

Straying away from the European traditions

While the European classical ballet often creates a fantasy world filled with "magic sylphs and swans", Balanchine diverted from the traditional story-telling method and let dancers just be dancers who showcase their artistic ability through movements. Throughout Balanchine's career, he created many neoclassical leotard ballets in which dancers perform in simple leotards rather than excessive costumes. Balanchine's removal of characters, storytelling, and costumes bring ballet back into reality to redefine the beauty of dance in its purest form. As the formalist David Michael Levin commented, "Balanchine has mastered the deepest logic of this intrinsic, expressive power of the human body".

African Influence & Elements

Although ballet has been seen as a white European art form, scholars pointed out the African influence in Balanchine's work, marking the African presence in American ballet. Moving to the United States, Balanchine was close to African American artists such as Katherine Dunham. According to dancers who worked with Balanchine such as Arthur Mitchell who comes from an African background, Balanchine would send students to Dunham or have dancers with an African background demonstrate skills common in African dance. The displacement of hips instead of vertical alignment, angular arms and flexed wrists, and the non-traditional timing of movements are the several key elements in Balanchine's works that scholars identify as developed under the African influence. Incorporating of African elements and dancers from an African cultural background made Balanchine's works American. The phenomenon of cultural influences and combinations in his works represent the diversity in the American society.

Personal life

In 1923, Balanchine married Tamara Geva, a sixteen-year-old dancer. After later parting ways with Geva, he became romantically involved with the ballerina

, from approximately 1924 to 1931. As ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' described their relationship in its obituary for Danilova: "She and Balanchine left the Soviet Union in 1924... Until 1931, she and Balanchine lived together as husband and wife, although they were never married. Balanchine was still officially married to another dancer, Tamara Geva, and he told Miss Danilova that because his marriage papers had been left behind in Russia, he feared it might be difficult to arrange a legal separation." He married and divorced three more times, all to women who were his dancers:

(1938–1946),

Maria Tallchief Maria Tallchief, born Elizabeth Marie Tall Chief ( "Two-Standards"; Osage language, Osage family name: , Osage script: ; January 24, 1925 – April 11, 2013), was an Osage Tribe, Osage and American ballerina. She was America's first major p ...

(1946–1952), and Tanaquil LeClercq (1952–1969). He had no children by any of his marriages. However the number of pregnancies and children he was responsible for in his young dancers is not publicly available. Famously, he had many extramarital liaisons. Biographer and intellectual historian

Clive James Clive James (born Vivian Leopold James; 7 October 1939 – 24 November 2019) was an Australian critic, journalist, broadcaster, writer and lyricist who lived and worked in the United Kingdom from 1962 until his death in 2019.Cultural Amnesia: Necessary Memories from History and the Arts'' (2007), James writes that:

Legacy and honors

With his School of American Ballet, New York City Ballet, and 400 choreographed works, Balanchine transformed American dance and created

, developing a unique style with his dancers highlighted by brilliant speed and attack. A monument at the

in Georgia was dedicated in Balanchine's memory. A crater on Mercury was named in his honor. George Balanchine Way is a segment of West 63rd Street (located between Columbus Avenue and Broadway) in New York City that was renamed in his honor in June 1990. Playwright Richard Nelson wrote ''Nikolai and the Others'', produced at the Mitzi Newhouse theater at

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 ...

in 2013 with

Michael Cerveris Michael Cerveris Jr. (born November 6, 1960) is an American actor, singer, and guitarist. He has performed in many stage musicals and plays, including several Stephen Sondheim musicals: ''Assassins (musical), Assassins'', ''Sweeney Todd: The ...

as Balanchine.

As the Teacher

Apart from his legacy in establishing the American-style ballet, Balanchine also contributed to the ballet education in the United States. Upon his arrival in the United States in 1933, Balanchine sensed the urgency of establishing an institutionalized ballet school to deliver systematic training in ballet. Established in 1934, the School of American Ballet was taught based on the Russian ballet style Balanchine once received himself with his own alternations. Balanchine's pedagogues focused on clarity and breadth of motion, sharpness of nuance, and intensity of image. Balanchine's lessons delivered were not set in stone, but instead an evolving glossary: he continuous tested his concepts on the stage, and renewed his teaching from time to time to reflect the most up-to-date ideal concepts.

Awards

* 1975 French

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

* 1978

Kennedy Center Honors The Kennedy Center Honors are annual honors given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to Culture of the United States, American culture. They have been presented annually since 1978, culminating each December in ...

* 1980

Austrian Decoration for Science and Art The Austrian Decoration for Science and Art () is a state decoration of the Republic of Austria and forms part of the Orders, decorations, and medals of Austria, Austrian national honours system. History The "Austrian Decoration for Science a ...

* 1983

Presidential Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award of the United States, alongside the Congressional Gold Medal. It is an award bestowed by decision of the president of the United States to "any person recommended to the President ...

* 1987 National Museum of Dance's Mr. & Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Hall of Fame (posthumously) * 1988 Induction into the

American Theater Hall of Fame The American Theater Hall of Fame was founded in 1972 in New York City. The first head of its executive committee was Earl Blackwell. In an announcement in 1972, he said that the new ''Theater Hall of Fame'' would be located in the Uris Theatre, ...

* Kisselgoff, Anna. "Balanchine 100: The Centennial Celebration"

Selected choreographed works

* 1928 ''

'' * 1929 ''

The Prodigal Son The Parable of the Prodigal Son is a parable of Jesus in the Bible. The Prodigal Son or Prodigal Son may also refer to: Film * ''L'Enfant prodigue'' (1907 film) (The Prodigal Son), by Michel Carré, based on his play * , a short silent film by ...

'' * 1935 ''

'' * 1936 ''

Zenobia Septimia Zenobia (Greek: Ζηνοβία, Palmyrene Aramaic: , ; 240 – c. 274) was a third-century queen of the Palmyrene Empire in Syria. Many legends surround her ancestry; she was probably not a commoner, and she married the ruler of the ...

'' * 1936 ''

Ziegfeld Follies of 1936 ''The Ziegfeld Follies of 1936'' is a musical revue with lyrics by Ira Gershwin, music by Vernon Duke and sketches by Gershwin and David Freedman. The Ziegfeld Follies were a series of revues presented from 1907 through 1931, 1934, 1936, 1943, and ...

'' * 1937 '' Jeu de cartes'' * 1938 ''

The Boys from Syracuse ''The Boys from Syracuse'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Lorenz Hart, based on William Shakespeare's play '' The Comedy of Errors'', as adapted by librettist George Abbott. The score includes swing and other contemp ...

'' * 1940 '' Cabin in the Sky'' * 1941 ''

Concerto Barocco ''Concerto Barocco'' is a neoclassical ballet choreographed by George Balanchine to Bach's Concerto for Two Violins. Danced by a cast of eleven, the ballet is completely plotless, and according to Balanchine, "has no "subject matter" beyond the ...

'' * 1941 '' Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2'' * 1942 '' Circus Polka'' * 1946 ''

'' * 1946 ''

'' * 1947 ''Symphonie Concertante'' * 1947 '' Symphony in C'' * 1947 ''

Theme and Variations In music, variation is a formal technique where material is repeated in an altered form. The changes may involve melody, rhythm, harmony, counterpoint, timbre, orchestration or any combination of these. Variation is often contrasted with mu ...

'' * 1948 ''

Where's Charley? ''Where's Charley?'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by George Abbott. The story was based on the 1892 play '' Charley's Aunt'' by Brandon Thomas. The musical debuted on Broadway in 1948 and was revived on Broadway ...

'' * 1949 ''Bourrée fantasque'' * 1949 ''

The Firebird ''The Firebird'' (; ) is a ballet and orchestral concert work by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1910 Paris season of Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes company; the original choreography was by Michel Fokine, who c ...

'' * 1951 ''

La Valse ''La valse'', ''poème chorégraphique pour orchestre'' (a choreographic poem for orchestra), is a work written by Maurice Ravel between February 1919 and 1920; it was first performed on 12 December 1920 in Paris. It was conceived as a ballet bu ...

'' * 1951 ''

Swan Lake ''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoje ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, links=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failu ...

'' (Act 2) * 1951 '' Courtin' Time'' * 1952 ''

Bayou In usage in the Southern United States, a bayou () is a body of water typically found in a flat, low-lying area. It may refer to an extremely slow-moving stream, river (often with a poorly defined shoreline), marshy lake, wetland, or creek. They ...

'' * 1952 ''

Scotch Symphony ''Scotch Symphony'' is a ballet choreographed by George Balanchine to Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 3, "Scottish". The ballet is inspired by Scotland, and evokes the style of the romantic ballet era, particularly ''La Sylphide'', which is set in Sc ...

'' * 1954 ''

Ivesiana ''Ivesiana'' is a ballet choreographed by George Balanchine to compositions by Charles Ives. The ballet premiered on September 14, 1954, four months after Ives's death, at the City Center of Music and Drama, performed by the New York City Ballet ...

'' * 1954 ''

Western Symphony ''Western Symphony'' is a ballet made by New York City Ballet co-founder and founding choreographer George Balanchine to American folk tunes arranged by Hershy Kay. It premiered on September 7, 1954 at the City Center of Music and Drama in N ...

'' * 1956 ''

Allegro Brillante ''Allegro Brillante'' is a ballet choreographed by George Balanchine to Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 3. The ballet is danced by a principal couple and a corps de ballet of eight. Balanchine said it "contains everything I knew about classic ...

'' * 1956 ''Divertimento No. 15'' * 1957 ''

'' * 1957 ''

Square Dance A square dance is a dance for four couples, or eight dancers in total, arranged in a square, with one couple on each side, facing the middle of the square. Square dances are part of a broad spectrum of dances known by various names: country dan ...

'' * 1958 ''Gounod Symphony'' * 1958 '' Stars and Stripes'' * 1959 ''

'' * 1960 ''Donizetti Variations'' * 1960 '' Liebeslieder Walzer'' * 1960 ''

Monumentum pro Gesualdo ''Monumentum pro Gesualdo'' is a 1960 arrangement and recomposition by Igor Stravinsky of three madrigals by Carlo Gesualdo: 1. Asciugate i begli occhi (Book 5, XIV); 2. Ma tu, cagion di quella (Book 5, XVIII); 3. Beltà poi che t'assenti (Book 6 ...

'' * 1960 '' Ragtime (I)'' * 1960 '' Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux'' * 1961 '' Raymonda Variations'' * 1962 ''

'' * 1963 ''

Bugaku is a Japanese traditional dance that has been performed to select elites, mostly in the Japanese imperial court, for over twelve hundred years. In this way, it has been known only to the nobility, although after World War II, the dance was ope ...

'' * 1964 ''

Tarantella Tarantella () is a group of various Southern Italy, southern Italian Italian folk dance, folk dances originating in the regions of Calabria, Campania, Sicilia, and Apulia. It is characterized by a fast Beat (music), upbeat tempo, usually in Ti ...

'' * 1965 ''

Don Quixote , the full title being ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'', is a Spanish novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts in 1605 and 1615, the novel is considered a founding work of Western literature and is of ...

'' * 1965 ''

Harlequinade ''Harlequinade'' is an English comic theatrical genre, defined by the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' as "that part of a pantomime in which the harlequin and clown play the principal parts". It developed in England between the 17th and mid-19th ce ...

'' * 1966 ''

Brahms–Schoenberg Quartet ''Brahms–Schoenberg Quartet'' is a one-act ballet by George Balanchine, to Johannes Brahms's Piano Quartet No. 1, orchestrated by Arnold Schoenberg. The ballet premiered on April 21, 1966 at the New York State Theater, performed by the New Yor ...

'' * 1966 ''

Variations Variation or Variations may refer to: Science and mathematics * Variation (astronomy), any perturbation of the mean motion or orbit of a planet or satellite, particularly of the moon * Genetic variation, the difference in DNA among individual ...

'' * 1967 ''Divertimento Brillante'' * 1967 ''

'' ** ''

Emeralds Emerald is a gemstone and a variety of the mineral beryl (Be3Al2(SiO3)6) colored green by trace amounts of chromium or sometimes vanadium.Hurlbut, Cornelius S. Jr., and Kammerling, Robert C. (1991). ''Gemology'', John Wiley & Sons, New York, ...

'' ** ''

Rubies Ruby is a pinkish-red-to-blood-red-colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum (aluminium oxide). Ruby is one of the most popular traditional jewelry gems and is very durable. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sapphi ...

'' ** ''

Diamonds Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Diamond is tasteless, odourless, strong, brittle solid, colourless in pure form, a poor conductor of electricity, and insol ...

'' * 1967 '' Ragtime (II)'' * 1968 '' Metastaseis and Pithoprakta'' * 1968 '' Requiem Canticles'' * 1968 '' La Source'' * 1968 ''

'' * 1970 '' Tschaikovsky Suite No. 3'' * 1970 '' Who Cares?'' * 1972 '' Duo Concertant'' * 1972 ''

Pulcinella Pulcinella (; ) is a classical character that originated in commedia dell'arte of the 17th century and became a stock character in Neapolitan puppetry. Pulcinella's versatility in status and attitude has captivated audiences worldwide and kept ...

'' * 1972 '' Scherzo à la Russe'' * 1972 '' Stravinsky Violin Concerto'' * 1972 ''

Symphony in Three Movements The ''Symphony in Three Movements'' is a work by Russian expatriate composer Igor Stravinsky. Stravinsky wrote the symphony from 1942–45 on commission by the Philharmonic Symphony Society of New York. It was premiered by the New York Philha ...

'' * 1973 ''Cortège Hongrois'' * 1975 ''

Le tombeau de Couperin ''Le Tombeau de Couperin'' (''The Tomb of Couperin'') is a suite (music), suite for solo piano by Maurice Ravel, composed between 1914 and 1917. The piece is in six movements, based on those of a traditional Baroque music, Baroque suite. Each ...

'' * 1975 ''

The Steadfast Tin Soldier "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" () is a literary fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen about a tin soldier's love for a paper ballerina. The tale was first published in Copenhagen by C.A. Reitzel on 2 October 1838 in the first booklet of ''Fair ...

'' * 1976 ''

Chaconne A chaconne ( , ; ; ; earlier English: chacony) is a type of musical composition often used as a vehicle for Variation (music), variation on a repeated short harmonic progression, often involving a fairly short repetitive bass-line (ground bass ...

'' * 1976 ''

Union Jack The Union Jack or Union Flag is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. The Union Jack was also used as the official flag of several British colonies and dominions before they adopted their own national flags. It is sometimes a ...

'' * 1977 '' Vienna Waltzes'' * 1978 ''

Ballo della Regina ''Ballo della Regina'' is a ballet choreographed by George Balanchine. Set to the ballet divertissement from Giuseppe Verdi's opera ''Don Carlos'', the Balanchine ballet is plotless but alludes to the grotto setting of the divertissement. The ball ...

'' * 1978 '' Kammermusik No. 2'' * 1979 '' Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme'' * 1980 ''Ballade'' * 1980 '' Robert Schumann's ''Davidsbündlertänze'''' * 1980 '' Walpurgisnacht Ballet'' * 1981 ''Garland Dance'' * 1981 '' Mozartiana'' * 1982 '' Élégie'' * 1982 '' Noah and the Flood''

Notable students

Over the decades Balanchine shared his artistic insights with several of his students including: *

Francisco Moncion Francisco Moncion (July 6, 1918 – April 1, 1995) was a Dominican-born American ballet dancer and choreographer who was a charter member of the New York City Ballet. Over the course of his long career, spanning some forty years, he created roles ...

Nicholas Magallanes Nicholas Magallanes (November 27, 1922 – May 2, 1977) was a Mexican-born American principal dancer and charter member of the New York City Ballet. Along with Francisco Moncion, Maria Tallchief, and Tanaquil Le Clercq, Magallanes was among t ...

Anne Murphy, "Magallanes, Nicholas," in ''International Encyclopedia of Dance'', edited by Selma Jeanne Cohen and others (New York: Oxford University Press, 1998).

Notes

References

Sources

* *

External links

*
Biography
on the website of the George Balanchine Foundation.
George Balanchine Catalog, including premiere date, cast, collaborators, and synopsis for all choreographic works

Timeline of Balanchine's life
on the website of the George Balanchine Trust *
Firebird
performed by

and Michael Maule,

Jacob's Pillow Jacob's Pillow is a Dance studio, dance center, school and performance space located in Becket, Massachusetts, in the Berkshires. The facility itself was listed as a National Historic Landmark District in 2003. History The site of Jacob's Pi ...

, 1951 **

, 2006
Archival footage of Nora Kaye and Hugh Laing performing in Balanchine's ''The Gods Go a-Begging'' in 1951 at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival.

George Balanchine: Master of the Dance
''American Masters'',

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

, January 14, 2004 *
Guide to George Balanchine archive
at Houghton Library,

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

Articles * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Balanchine, George 1904 births 1983 deaths American people of Georgian (country) descent American people of Russian descent American choreographers Ballet choreographers Male ballet dancers from Georgia (country) Ballet dancers from Georgia (country) Ballet masters Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo choreographers Ballet teachers George Balanchine Ballets Russes choreographers Choreographers of American Ballet Theatre Choreographers of New York City Ballet Deaths from Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease Neurological disease deaths in New York (state) Infectious disease deaths in New York (state) Kennedy Center honorees New York City Ballet Dancers from Saint Petersburg Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients Recipients of the Austrian Decoration for Science and Art Russian male ballet dancers Russian choreographers Soviet defectors White Russian emigrants to France White Russian emigrants to the United States Emigrants from the Russian Empire to France Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet alumni American dance teachers

Early life and family

Career

Early auditions and training

Ballets Russes

United States

Relocation to West Coast

Return to New York

Death

The Balanchine Style

Straying away from the European traditions

African Influence & Elements

Personal life

Legacy and honors

As the Teacher

Awards

Selected choreographed works

Notable students

See also

Notes

References

Sources

Further reading

External links