In such a passionate and difficult art form like ballet, forming strong bonds with the people you dance with is almost inevitable. Just like the friends you have made since starting ballet, professional dancers do the same thing with their fellow company members and dancing partners. The connection between Suzanne Farrell and George Balanchine began as any other partnership may have, but quickly developed into something bigger; something that we now consider one of the ‘great’ partnerships in dance history.
Suzanne Farrell was born in 1945 and moved to New York City when she was 15 to pursue a career in ballet. She was given a full scholarship to the School of American Ballet (George Balanchine’s ballet academy that feeds directly into his adjoining company, the New York City Ballet, or NYCB). George Balanchine himself handpicked Suzanne Farrell for NYCB when she was only 16, after one year at SAB. Her unique combination of musical, physical, and dramatic qualities is said to be what caught his eye, and of course her balletic frame and ethereal beauty. All of these characteristics inspired something in Balanchine’s choreographic imagination.
When using Suzanne in choreography, Balanchine was blown away by what she could do with her body and with ballet. She was not limited by classical ballet technique, but instead, used her strength and knowledge to interpret Balanchine’s ideas into physical form. He invented countless ballets for Suzanne that introduced completely new movements never before seen in the world of ballet. Suzanne was said to be his muse, inspiring him to push the limits of classical technique. Some of these works include Diamonds, Mozartiana, Apollo, and her most famous role of ‘Kitri’ in Balanchine’s version of Don Quixote.
After a long and successful career with NYCB, Farrell left the company, leaving her great partnership with Balanchine behind. She went on to dance for another nearly two decades while Balanchine lived out the rest of his days in New York City. After his death, she was made a repititeur for the George Balanchine Trust, an organization that nominates heirs to his ballets in order to ensure they are maintained the way Balanchine intended.
In this way, the great partnership of Suzanne Farrell and George Balanchine still lives on through his ballets, the way it all began.
Former New American Talent/Dance winner (2006) and current Princess Grace Foundation Special Project Award recipient, Thang Dao tells us about his latest work with Ballet Austin II.
His world premiere work, Quiet Imprint, debuts March 6 & 7 at the AustinVentures StudioTheater.
The third biennial New American Talent/Dance is right around the corner. Get excited! We’re already buzzing about it around here. Check out the video above or click here for more info on New American Talent/Dance.
Grab this chance to win a pair of autographed technique/pointe shoes from the Ballet Austin dancer featured in the quiz. This quiz’s deadline has been extended to March 10th, but don’t wait – post your answer without delay… today!
The Quiz:
Originally from Seattle, Washington, I have performed with Pacific Northwest Ballet, Ballet Pacifica, Redlands Festival Ballet, Ballet Austin, and as a guest artist with the Suzanne Farrell Ballet. I have danced principal roles such as Hamlet in Hamlet, Romeo in Romeo & Juliet, Petruchio in The Taming of the Shrew, Prince Ivan in The Firebird, Prince Charming in Cinderella, and Cavalier in The Nutcracker. I have been awarded the Austin Critics Table Award twice. Who Am I?
Click here and post your answer below! The deadline for submissions is March 10. Be sure to include your first and last name. A winning answer will selected at random from all of the correct answers. The winner will receive an autographed pointe or technique shoe from the dancer featured in the quiz.*
*You must be a current Ballet Austin Academy Student in good standing in order to be eligible to win. The winner will be contacted for further details on attaining the prize. Terms and conditions are subject to change without notice.
For our final installment of the Truth & Beauty / The Bach Project video blog series, we headed to the studio to capture Artistic Director Stephen Mills as he created the choreography for his forthcoming world premiere work. Then, we sat down with Mr. Mills to discuss the ins and outs of his creative process. Check out the video above.
Hope you’ve enjoyed our video blog series leading up to Truth & Beauty / The Bach Project. See you at the performances this weekend!
If you don’t have tickets yet (tsk tsk), click here to get them—especially if you need Valentine’s Day weekend plans.
What does it mean to get down and get groovy? And what in the world are basic break, pop and lock, tricks, and rock out? Somehow it all has to do with dance. And anything that has to do with dance has to do with Ballet Austin.
These are all words I hear around Ballet Austin’s Butler Community School, the place to be for anyone who feels like dancing! Do you feel like dancing? When you hear music, does your body just have to move? Are you looking for a place to just dance and have fun? Do you dance in your kitchen? Dance at the club? Do you want to learn some moves you thought you could only see on music videos and dance shows? Then come down to the Butler Community School in February to try a free hip hop or street jazz class.
Hip Hop and Street Jazz at the Butler Community School are for anyone. I think you’ll have so much fun that I am giving away free classes, water bottles and t-shirts to get you in the door! That’s right…random drawings for prizes, special giveaways, and more fun than you can pack into any hour that will make you feel like a video star.
February BCS Classes of the Month include Hip Hop and Street Jazz for teens and adults, and Kid’s Hip Hop, a fun and funky class for kids ages 8-12.
See you at the BCS!
For more information about the February BCS Classes of the Month CLICK HERE!
This week’s video blog focuses in on the painting—a work by artist Wes Hempel, owned by Artistic Director Stephen Mills—that inspired much of Truth & Beauty / The Bach Project. Mr. Mills discusses how elements of that painting have been translated into themes and production elements in the three ballets, including his dynamic use of video as a backdrop for dance.
Check out this week’s video and stay tuned for the final installment of the video blog next week, which will explore the fascinating process by which Mr. Mills creates new choreography. This final edition will provide you a window into the studio as the Company and Mr. Mills prepare his world premiere work, Truth & Beauty / The Bach Project.
The second installment of our Truth & Beauty / The Bach Project video blog series focuses on the live music that will accompany the ballet. Both composed by and inspired by Bach, the music is a driving force in this multimedia production.
The three sections of the ballet feature three related yet unique treatments. A chamber ensemble under the direction of Dr. Michelle Schumann, Director of The Austin Chamber Music Center, will perform Bach’s Orchestral Suite No. 2, accompanying the first section. The following section will feature Dr. Schumann on solo piano, for which she will play an intertwined arrangement of pieces by Bach and Philip Glass.
For the third section, Austin’s own musician/composer extraordinaire Graham Reynolds has taken a Bach Suite in A minor and re-imagined it, setting this classical Bach dance to modern dance rhythms in his own contemporary interpretation of the piece. This section will be played by an ensemble assembled by Mr. Reynolds featuring strings, a full percussion section, and Reynolds on piano.
We sat down with Artistic Director Stephen Mills, as well as Dr. Michelle Schumann and Graham Reynolds, to discuss their exciting new collaboration surrounding Truth & Beauty / The Bach Project. Check out the video!
Watch our gorgeous new video (you may remember the shorter version from this year’s production of The Nutcracker), featuring Company Dancer Ashley Lynn Gilfix and sponsored by BMW of Austin.
And endless thanks to the wonderful production team that made this possible: The Liberal Arts, Beef and Pie Productions, and Ariel Quintans of Action Figure.
The process of creating art is a process to which most people cannot relate or have never seen in person. Even with the relatively creative job that I get the pleasure of having here at Ballet Austin, I would consider myself to be light years from an ‘artist’. So as I peek into the studio to watch Mr. Mills working with the dancers during the day, or listen in on meetings between the artistic staff, I am always enamored with the conversations that take place in the creation of one of our world premiere works.
In order to give everyone an insider’s look into what goes into building a new ballet, we are creating a video blog series that will document some of the inspiration, thought and work that is going into our next production, Truth & Beauty / The Bach Project. In a series of interviews each week, Stephen Mills will walk us through the process of creating his latest original ballet. From the original ideas about the work, to the choreography, costumes and music. Each week will feature a different aspect of the production.
Check the blog and your e-mail each week for the next installment!
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Image via our friends at thewinger.com
