Robert Joffrey
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Robert Joffrey (1930-1988) was an American dancer, teacher, producer and choreographer, known for his highly imaginative modern ballets. Of Afghan parentage, he was born in Seattle, Washington and originally named Abdulla Jaffa Anver Bey Khan.
Joffrey studied ballet and modern dance in New York City and made his debut in 1949 with the French choreographer Roland Petit and his Ballets de Paris. From 1950 to 1955, he taught at the New York High School for the Performing Arts, where he staged his earliest ballets.
In 1954 he formed his own company, which premiered Le bal masqué (The Masked Ball, 1954; music by French composer Francis Poulenc) and Pierrot Lunaire (1955; music by Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg). Joffrey's other works include Gamelan (1962) and Astarte (1967), which was set to rock music with special lighting and motion-picture effects.
The Robert Joffrey Ballet took up residence at the New York City Center in 1966. In 1982 it moved its principal activities to Los Angeles, California and in 1995 to Chicago, Illinois. Noted for its experimental repertoire, the company was called the "Joffrey Ballet of Chicago" after its move but has since returned to being called simply the Joffrey Ballet. Besides Joffrey's works its repertoire includes many works by Gerald Arpino, Joffrey's long-time co-director and now artistic director emeritus, and ballets commissioned by Joffrey from new choreographers as well as works by such established choreographers as George Balanchine, Alvin Ailey, and Twyla Tharp.
Joffrey died in 1988 of AIDS. [1]
