PaleyArchive ColorBars TopBanner2

GREAT PERFORMANCES: DANCING FOR MR. B: SIX BALANCHINE BALLERINAS (TV)

Summary

One in this series on the performing arts. In this documentary, six American prima ballerinas discuss their association with their mentor, choreographer George Balanchine. Through interviews, clips of performances, and photos with accompanying narration, Maria Tallchief, Mary Ellen Moylan, Melissa Hayden, Allegra Kent, Merrill Ashley, and Darci Kistler provide insight on Balanchine as both an artist and a man. The program begins with comments from each dancer, followed by a brief narrative that illustrates how the ballerinas' careers span Balanchine's own forty-year career in the United States. Tallchief, Moylan, Hayden, Kent, and Ashley talk about why they became dancers and how they began working with Balanchine and the New York City Ballet. Other topics discussed include the "pioneering days" of Balanchine's work; the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and the Ballet Society; his contributions to the world of dance as a teacher and choreographer; his superior understanding of music and dancers' bodies; and dances created by Balanchine specifically for each of the dancers, including "The Four Temperaments" for Moylan and "The Seven Deadly Sins" for Kent -- photographs of Kent and Lotte Lenya appearing in the piece are accompanied by an audio excerpt of Lenya singing. Tallchief is shown teaching at the School of Chicago Ballet, and Hayden is shown rehearsing "Serenade" with students from the North Carolina School of the Arts. Tallchief recalls her marriage to Balanchine, which was eventually annulled. The dancers also discuss growing older, coping with families and careers, and Balanchine's fascination with his young proteges. Ashley then talks about her career and Suzanne Farrell's association with Balanchine. Later, Kistler, shown in rehearsal with dancer Stanley Williams, talks about how she became a dancer and eventually joined the New York City Ballet. She recalls her first meetings with Balanchine and the events that led to her performance at the age of fifteen in a 1980 production of "Swan Lake" by the School of American Ballet workshop; in an excerpt from the performance, Kistler dances with Cornel Crabtree. The following topics are discussed by the six dancers: dance as an art form and a discipline; their relationships with Balanchine and his influence on their lives; the final days of his life; and his legacy to the world of dance. Tallchief is shown teaching her students dances choreographed by Balanchine, and Kent coaches Kistler and Ib Andersen in a rehearsal of Balanchine's version of "La Sonnambula," which they later perform.The program includes excerpts from performances of the following works choreographed by Balanchine: "The Nutcracker," with Mary Ellen Moylan; a 1947 rehearsal of "The Four Temperaments," with Mary Ellen Moylan and Fred Danieli performing "Sanguinic" and Tanaquil LeClercq performing "Choleric"; two clips from "Firebird," with Maria Tallchief as "Berceuse," partnered with Michael Maule in the second clip; "Concerto Barocco," featuring Diana Adams and Tanaquil LeClercq; "Scotch Symphony," featuring Maria Tallchief and Andre Eglevsky; "Don Quixote," with Maria Tallchief; "Stars and Stripes," featuring Melissa Hayden; "Agon," featuring Allegra Kent and Arthur Mitchell; "Symphony in C," featuring Allegra Kent and Conrad Ludlow; "Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux," performed by Melissa Hayden and Edward Villella; and "Apollo," performed by Suzanne Farrell and Peter Martins; "Ballo Della Regina," performed by Merrill Ashley; and "The Four Temperaments" featuring Merrill Ashley and Daniel Duell.

Details

  • NETWORK: PBS
  • DATE: March 30, 1990 9:00 PM
  • RUNNING TIME: 1:22:14
  • COLOR/B&W: Color
  • CATALOG ID: T90:0097
  • GENRE: Arts documentaries; Dance
  • SUBJECT HEADING: Ballet; Biography; Dance; Choreography
  • SERIES RUN: PBS - TV series, 1974-
  • COMMERCIALS: N/A

CREDITS

  • Anne Belle … Producer, Director
  • Deborah Dickson … Director, Co-Director
  • Alla Edwards … Instrumentalist, Pianist
  • Paul Patton … Instrumentalist, Pianist
  • Marian Seldes … Narrator
  • Maria Tallchief … Guest, Dancer
  • Mary Ellen Moylan … Guest, Dancer
  • Melissa Hayden … Guest, Dancer
  • Allegra Kent … Guest, Dancer
  • Merrill Ashley … Guest, Dancer
  • Darci Kistler … Dancer, Guest
  • Diana Adams … Dancer
  • Ib Andersen … Dancer
  • Cornel Crabtree … Dancer
  • Fred Danieli … Dancer
  • Daniel Duell … Dancer
  • Andre Eglevsky … Dancer
  • Suzanne Farrell … Dancer
  • Tanaquil LeClercq … Dancer
  • Conrad Ludlow … Dancer
  • Peter Martins … Dancer
  • Michael Maule … Dancer
  • Arthur Mitchell … Dancer
  • Edward Villella … Dancer
  • George Balanchine
  • Lotte Lenya
  • New York City Ballet, The
  • Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, The
  • Ballet Society, The
  • School of American Ballet, The
  • School of Chicago Ballet, The
  • North Carolina School of the Arts, The