THE ARTISTS
Artist Profiles movie. A major artistic figure of the twentieth century, Balanchine revolutionized the look of classical ballet. Taking classicism as his base, he heightened, quickened, expanded, streamlined, and even inverted the fundamentals of the 400-year- old language of academic dance. This had an inestimable influence on the growth of dance in America. Although at first his style seemed particularly suited to the energy and speed of American dancers, especially those he trained, his ballets are now performed by all the major classical
GEORGE BALANCHINE (1904-1983) Choreographer Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, George Balanchine is regarded as the foremost contemporary choreographer in the world of ballet. He came to the United States in late 1933, at the age of 29, accepting the invitation of the young American arts patron Lincoln Kirstein (1907-1996), whose great passions included the dream of creating a ballet company in America. At Balanchine’s behest, Kirstein was also prepared to support the formation of an American academy of ballet that would eventually rival the long-established schools of Europe. This was the School of American Ballet, founded in 1934, the first product of the Balanchine-Kirstein collaboration. Several ballet companies directed by the two were created and dissolved in the years that followed, while Balanchine found other outlets for his choreography. Eventually, with a performance on October 11, 1948, the New York City Ballet was born. Balanchine served as its ballet master and principal choreographer from 1948 until his death in 1983. Balanchine’s more than 400 dance works include Serenade (1934), Concerto Barocco (1941), Le Palais de Cristal, later renamed Symphony in C (1947), Orpheus (1948), The Nutcracker (1954), Agon (1957), Symphony in Three Movements (1972), Stravinsky Violin Concerto (1972), Vienna Waltzes (1977), Ballo della Regina (1978), and Mozartiana (1981). His final ballet, a new version of Stravinsky’s Variations for Orchestra , was created in 1982. He also choreographed for films, operas, revues, and musicals. Among his best known dances for the stage is Slaughter on Tenth Avenue , originally created for Broadway’s On Your Toes (1936). The musical was later made into a
Joan of Arc . Ms. Karinska worked with George Balanchine and New York City Ballet for the duration of her career with Balanchine appointing her as principal costumer of New York City Ballet in 1962. In the same year, Ms. Karinska’s achievements were publicly recognized when she received the Capezio Dance Award for costumes “of unusual beauty for the spectator and complete delight for the dancer.” A true perfectionist, she deserved the compliment paid to her by George Balanchine: “There is Shakespeare for literature and Madame Karinska for costumes.” Ms. Karinska died in New York on October 18, 1983.
ballet companies throughout the world. Copyright @ 2002 The George Balanchine Foundation. Reprinted by permission.
KATHERINE BURKWALL-CISCON Pianist, Rubies
KARINSKA (1886-1983) Costume Designer
Chicago native Katherine Ciscon received her bachelor’s degree in piano from Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, and a double master’s degree in both piano performance and collaborative arts from the University of Houston Moores School of Music. She was named Principal Pianist of Houston Ballet in 1995 and has also been a vocal coach and Visiting Artist Professor of Music at the Moores School of Music. While at Houston Ballet, Ms. Ciscon has performed as soloist in the world premieres of Stanton Welch’s Nosotros, Class and The Core , Justin Peck’s Reflections (world premiere of Sufjan Stevens music), Garrett Smith’s Reveal , James Kudelka’s Passion , Ben Stevenson’s Eclipse , and Trey McIntyre’s Bound , among others. She has also been featured as soloist in many works, including Stanton Welch’s Sons de L’âme and Tu Tu , William Forsythe’s Artifact Suite , Mark Morris’s Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes , Jerome Robbins’s The Concert (Or the Perils of Everybody) , and George Balanchine’s Rubies , Ballet Imperial , and The Four Temperaments .
Born Varvara Zhmoudska in Kharov, Ukraine on October 3, 1886, Ms. Karinska began her long career as the highly acclaimed interpreter of designs by such artists as Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, and Marc Chagall; however, it was as principal costumer of New York City Ballet that she made her name. Ms. Karinska’s first costumes were made for nightclub performers and the Comedie-Française, but in 1932 she received a commission from ballet and opera directors Colonel de Basil and Rene Blum to make the costumes for Balanchine’s ballet Cotillon , to designs by Christian Berand. After many more commissions for theater as well as the ballet, she quickly became known as the only costumer able to translate an artist’s sketches into fabric. Ms. Karinska left Paris for New York City in 1939 where she created and designed costumes for opera, dance, and theater. Ms. Karinska also worked in Hollywood creating costumes for film. In 1948, she won an Academy Award for her designs for Ingrid Bergman in
14 HOUSTON BALLET
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online