George Balanchine - the Greatest Choreographer

1. George Balanchine, the greatest choreographer of the 20th century and the father of American ballet, was one of the most innovative creators. He remains best known for the series of bold modernist masterpieces, such as plotless ballets that were powerful examples of Balanchine’s idea that “movement in choreography is an end in itself: its only purpose is to create the impression of intensity and beauty”.

Balanchine received his training in Russia before he was invited to come to America in 1933, where he directed the new School of American Ballet and the short lived American Ballet Company. America inspired him to develop new techniques in dance construction and appearance which have altered the perspective of the world of dance. He has created over 426 ballets that are celebrated for their imagination and originality, but Balanchine is not only gifted in creating entirely new productions, his choreography for classical works, such as The Nutcracker and Swan Lake, have been equally fresh and inventive. Balanchine created plotless ballets, where the dancing upstaged glitz and storytelling. His work never featured a star, as he believed the performance should outshine the individual. He is credited with developing the neo-classical style distinct to the 20th century. He later became the co-founder of The New York City Ballet, which is the leading dance group of the United States and has made American dance the most advanced and richest in choreographic development in the world today.

In 1934 Balanchine created Serenade, a milestone in the history of dance, this ballet planted the seeds for the next 50 years, during which he reshaped classical ballet. It is the first original ballet Balanchine created in America. Balanchine began the ballet as a lesson in stage technique and worked unexpected rehearsal events into the choreography. A student’s fall or late arrival to rehearsal became part of the ballet. Serenade soon become a signature piece for him, the New York company he co-founded, and his new conception of a plotless ballets. The ballet is set to Tchaikovsky’s score "Serenade for Strings in C.", the ballet is performed by 28 dancers in blue costumes in front of a blue background, and Balanchine called it "a