George Balanchine (1904–1983)

Author of 101 Stories of the Great Ballets

About the Author

George Balanchine is considered one of the major figures in twentieth-century ballet. Born in St. Petersburg of Georgian heritage in1983, Balanchine studied ballet at the school of the Imperial Theatre. His first piece was choreographed while he was still a student there. After graduating from the show more school, he studied at the Petrograd Conservatory and formed his own dance company. Balanchine's innovations troubled authorities, however, and he defected while on a European tour with the Soviet State Dancers. After his defection, he worked with Sergei Diaghilev in Paris and choreographed several ballets for Diaghilev's Russian Ballet, including a Pastorale (1925), The Trimph of Neptune (1926), and two of his masterpieces, Apollo (1928) and The Prodigal Son (1929). When Diaghilev died in 1929, Balanchine worked for various companies before forming Les Ballets Russe de Monte Carlo in 1932. Then, in 1934, he was invited to the United States, where he formed the School of American Ballet in New York City. Serenade (1934), the first ballet he choreographed in the United States, became the signature piece of the company. After World War II, the American Ballet Company disbanded, and Balanchine directed a small dance company known as the Ballet Society. In 1948 this small company became the New York City Ballet, and Balanchine became its guiding light. Under Balanchine's creative genius and leadership, the New York City Ballet emerged as one of the premier dance companies in the United States. He created nearly 100 works of great variety for the company, including Agon (1957), Stars and Stripes (1958), Symphony in C (1959), Theme and Variations (1960), Ballo della Regina (1978), Davidsbundlertanze (1980), and Mozartiana (1981). The company, along with its ballet school, the School of American Ballet, has been a vital force in American ballet, producing distinctive dancers and works. In 1993 the New York City Ballet presented a major retrospective of Balanchine's works. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

Includes the names: George Balachine, Balanchine George, Goerge Balanchine (ph)

Image credit: Suzanne Farrell and George Balanchine
dancing in a segment of "Don Quixote", 1965,
World Telegram & Sun photo by O. Fernandez
(LoC Prints and Photographs Division,
LC-USZ62-129045)

Works by George Balanchine

Popular Recent

101 Stories of the Great Ballets (1975) 182 copies, 1 review

Balanchine's Complete Stories of the Great Ballets (1954) 150 copies

Balanchine's New complete stories of the great ballets (1968) 26 copies

Choreography of George Balanchine: A Catalogue of Works (1983) 25 copies

Balanchine's Festival of Ballets (1978) 21 copies

The Turning Point [1977 film] (1977) — Choreographer — 16 copies

Balanchine's Festival of Ballet, Vol. 2 N-Z.: 002 (1984) 12 copies

Festival of Ballet: v. 1 (1984) 10 copies

Jewels 10 copies

Balanchine (2004) 8 copies

Balanchine : Jewels [2000 film] (2006) — Choreographer — 4 copies

Lo Schiaccianoci (2017) 3 copies

Dancing for Mr B - Six Balanchine Ballerinas / Moylan, Tallchief, Ashley, Kistler, Hayden, Kent (2008) 3 copies

G. B. (1984) 3 copies

The Nutcracker: A Ballet InTwo Acts, Four Scenes, and Prologue (1973) 2 copies

La Valse [excerpt, 1951 film] — Choreographer — 1 copy

Danza En los EUA 1 copy

Balanchine's Comp stories of Ballets 1 copy

New York City Ballet : a celebration in photographs : 50th anniversary commemorative program 1 copy

The Steadfast Tin Soldier by Anderson, Hans Christian & Richards, George M. (Adapted By), And Juvenile Collection (Library Of Congress) (1927) 1 copy

Rubies 1 copy

La Source 1 copy

Programme du New York City Ballet au Théâtre national de l'Opéra en octobre 1956 1 copy, 1 review

Ballerina Great Stories 1 copy

Portrait of Mr.B (1984) 1 copy

Work Explorer

Associated Works

George Balanchine's The Nutcracker (1993) 285 copies, 1 review

Labanotation: The System of Analyzing and Recording Movement (1984) — Preface, some editions — 62 copies

Treasures from American Film Archives: 50 Preserved Films (2000) — Choreographer — 16 copies

A Midsummer Night's Dream [1999 TV movie] (2001) — Choreographer — 3 copies

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Common Knowledge

Canonical name: Balanchine, George
Legal name: ბალანჩივაძე, გიორგი მელიტონის ძე
Other names: Balanchivadze, Georgy Melitonovich(birth)
Balanchivadze, Giorgi
Birthdate: 1904-01-22
Date of death: 1983-04-30
Gender: male
Education: Imperial Ballet School
Petrograd Conservatory (Russia)
Occupations: choreographer (ballet)
ballet dancer
artistic director (ballet company)
Organizations: New York City Ballet
American Academy of Arts and Letters(American Honorary ∙ 1983)
Ballets Russes (1924-1929)
Awards and honors: Kennedy Center Honors (1978)
Presidential Medal of Freedom (1983)
Award for Distinguished Service to the Arts (1975)
Relationships: Geva, Tamara (1st wife)
LeClercq, Tanaquil (4th wife)
Tallchief, Maria (3rd wife)
Zorina, Vera (2nd wife)
Farrell, Suzanne (protégé)
Kirstein, Lincoln (co-founder, NYCB) (show all 9)
Danilova, Alexandra (partner)
Baronova, Irina (protege)
Stravinsky, Igor (friend, colleague)
Short biography: George Balanchine, was one of the 20th century's greatest choreographers, some say the greatest in the history of ballet. He developed his neo-classical style first in Europe with the Ballets Russes and then in the USA as co-founder and balletmaster of the New York City Ballet. He also worked on Broadway, in Hollywood, and with several European ballet companies.
Nationality: Georgia (family)
Russian Empire (birth)
USA (naturalized)
Birthplace: St Petersburg, Russian Empire
Places of residence: St. Petersburg, Russia
New York, New York, USA
Place of death: New York, New York, USA
Burial location: Oakland Cemetery, Sag Harbor, New York, USA
Associated Place (for map): New York, New York, USA

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3 reviews

marievictoire 1,497 reviews

Programme du New York City Ballet au Théâtre national de l'Opéra en octobre 1956 by George Balanchine

Joli programme grand format - avec un élégant effet de transparence sur la couverture - pour la 4e tournée en Europe du New York City Ballet : nombreuses photos de danseurs en costume Présentation de la troupe et répertoire complet de la troupe.en anglais.
Les publicités sont françaises.

Mar 26, 2023French

jgcorrea 2,325 reviews

101 stories of the great ballets by George Balanchine

Some ballets are abstract, like RIVERDANCE, IN THE UPPER ROOM,
BALLET IMPERIAL, CUMBRE FLAMENCA or DANCES AT A GATHERING for instance. But, yes, ballets can tell stories, and this is a key element of classical ballet. Story ballets have a plot, characters, and a beginning and end. Viewers can understand the story even though no words are spoken. The dancers, music, and costumes bring the stories to life on stage.
My personal favorites are
BELLE AU BOIS DORMANT, LA
ROMEU E JULIETA
LAC DU CYGNE, show more LE
BAYADÈRE, LA – THE TEMPLE DANCER
SPARTACUS
42ND STREET
DON QUIXOTE
ESMERALDA
Stone flower
Taming of the shrew
SYLPHIDE, LA
CINDERELLA
FILLE MAL-GARDEE, LA
ROMEO ET JULIETTE
NAPOLI
GISELLE
ONEGIN
A FOLK TALE
COPPÉLIA
IVAN THE TERRIBLE
CASSE-NOISETTE
KERMESSE IN BRUGGE
MAN from THE EAST
SALOMÉ
FRÖKEN JULIE
GREASE
HAIR
THE IDIOT
KISS ME KATE
BYE BYE BIRDIE
EASTER PARADE
LE PAVILLON AU BORD DE LA MER
ANNIE GET YOUR GUN
THE HOUSE OF BERNARDA ALBA,
PIPPIN
MAN OF LA MANCHA
DAPHNIS ET CHLÖÉ
RAYMONDA
OISEAU DE FEU, L'
DREAM, THE
ROMEO AND JULIET
THE SOLDIER'S TALE
WEST SIDE STORY
A CHORUS LINE
HALF A SIXPENCE
OLIVER!
FLORESTA AMAZONICA
FIREBIRD
GAITÉ PARISIENNE
SHEHERAZADE
RAINDOG
VIVA LAS VEGAS
CARMEN
RITE OF SPRING
THE FAIRY’S KISS
ELITE SYNCOPATIONS
SINGIN' in THE RAIN
BELLE OF NEW YORK, THE
PETROUCHKA
AN AMERICAN in PARIS
SERAIT-CE LA MORT (VIER ERNSTE LIEDER)
NOCES, LES
SEVEN DEADLY SINS, THE
PERSEPHONE
PULCINELLA
AGON
TRICORNE, LE
PICTURES OF AN EXHIBITION
SACRE DU PRINTEMPS, LE
THE MIRACULPOUS MANDARIN
Les Sylphides show less

Mar 2, 2025Portuguese (Brazil)