Performance Dates
FOUR CONTRASTING BALLETS UNIFIED BY THE COMPELLING FORCE OF A MUSIC ICON
Russian composer Igor Stravinsky’s personal and professional relationship with George Balanchine constituted one of the great artistic partnerships of the 20th Century. On this program, two Balanchine ballets are paired with two created by Jerome Robbins, also an ardent admirer of the composer. Apollo, Balanchine’s first major collaboration with Stravinsky, dates to 1928 and is the oldest dance in the repertory; by contrast, Symphony in Three Movements, a classic leotard ballet, was created more than 40 years later, in a distinctly different style. Robbins is represented by The Cage, an intense and enjoyably macabre dance about fierce female creatures, and Concertino, a more rarely seen pas de trois drawn from a larger work.
Ballets on this Program
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Apollo
Balanchine's first collaboration with Stravinsky and one of his earliest international successes, Apollo presents the young god as he is ushered into adulthood by the muses of poetry, mime, and dance.
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The Cage
The Cage plunges into the world of natural selection, using Stravinsky’s daring score to depict the feral instinct compelling the female of an insect species to consider its male counterpart as prey.
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Concertino
The captivating suspense of Stravinsky’s score, at times swelling, at others intricately layered, accompanies a trio of dancers and their compelling connectivity.
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Symphony in Three Movements
One of Balanchine’s most celebrated leotard ballets, Symphony in Three Movements is bold and breathtakingly jet-propelled, a kinetic achievement, striking for its confidence and power.
