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Copyright 1994-2008 Britannica Concise Encyclopedia | From: Britannica Concise Encyclopedia | Date: 2007 New York City Ballet | Preeminent U.S. ballet company. The company is descended from the American Ballet, which was founded by George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein in 1935 and revived as the Ballet Society in 1946; it assumed its current name in 1948. Under Balanchine's artistic direction, the company became the leading U.S. ballet troupe, combining European classical ballet with American characterization and innovation and exerting enormous influence on American dance. It moved to its permanent home, the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center, in 1964. Later artistic directors Jerome Robbins and Peter Martins contributed numerous works to its repertoire. Its leading dancers have included Maria Tallchief, Edward Villella, Jacques d'Amboise, and Suzanne Farrell. www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1B1-373411.html Suzanne Farrell | [orig. Roberta Sue Ficker] (born Aug. 16, 1945, Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.) U.S. ballet dancer. She trained at the School of American Ballet and joined the New York City Ballet (NYCB) at age 16, becoming a soloist at age 18. George Balanchine created roles for her in ballets such as Meditation, Don Quixote, and Slaughter on Tenth Avenue. After several years as principal dancer with Maurice Béjart's Ballet of the 20th Century (1970–75), she returned to the NYCB in 1975 as principal dancer. There she continued to create leading roles until she retired in 1989 and joined the faculty of the School of American Ballet, on which she served until 1993. She later formed her own company, which carried on the Balanchine tradition. /www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1B1-364235.html Jacques d'Amboise | [orig. Jacques Joseph Ahearn] (born July 28, 1934, Dedham, Mass., U.S.) U.S. dancer and choreographer. After studying at the School of American Ballet, he made his debut at age 12. He joined the New York City Ballet at age 15 and from the 1950s to the 1970s created leading roles in ballets such as Western Symphony (1954), Stars and Stripes (1958), and Who Cares? (1970). D'Amboise was admired for his athletic interpretations of both character and classical roles. He also performed in films. He later founded and directed the National Dance Institute, a nonprofit group dedicated to dance instruction in public schools. www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1B1-362213.html Peter Martins | (born Oct. 27, 1946, Copenhagen, Den.) Danish-born U.S. dancer, choreographer, and director of the New York City Ballet. He trained at the Royal Danish Ballet School and became a member of its company in 1965. He joined the New York City Ballet in 1969 as a principal dancer and created roles in ballets such as Jerome Robbins's Goldberg Variations (1971) and George Balanchine's Duo Concertante (1972). He began choreographing for the company in 1977 with Calcium Light Night. After Balanchine's death in 1983, Martins became codirector (until 1990) and then sole director of the company. www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1B1-371435.html Jerome Robbins | [orig. Jerome Rabinowitz] (born Oct. 11, 1918, New York, N.Y., U.S.—died July 29, 1998, New York City) U.S. dancer, choreographer, and director. He joined Ballet Theatre (later American Ballet Theatre) as a dancer in 1940. His first choreographic success was Fancy Free (set to a musical score by Leonard Bernstein), which was expanded into the musical On the Town (1944). He joined the New York City Ballet in 1948 and soon became associate director (1950–59), creating many works for the company. For the Broadway stage he choreographed successful musicals such as The King and I (1951; film, 1956), West Side Story (1957; film, 1961), Gypsy (1959; television, 1993), and Fiddler on the Roof (1964). Returning to the New York City Ballet, he was resident choreographer and ballet master (1969–83) and then codirector with Peter Martins until retiring in 1990. His choreography is marked by a blend of modern, academic, and popular dance styles in a variety of American idioms. www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1B1-376999.html Maurice Béjart | [orig. Maurice Jean Berger] (born Jan. 1, 1927, Marseille, Fr.) French-born Belgian dancer, choreographer, and opera director. He studied in Paris, then toured with various companies before founding his own, Les Ballets de l'Étoile (later Ballet Théâtre de Maurice Béjart), in Paris in 1954. In 1959 it moved to Brussels; renamed the Ballet of the 20th Century, it became one of the world's foremost troupes. His productions have been noted for reworking tradition in unusual and often controversial ways. Since 1961 he has also worked in opera, staging Tales of Hoffmann and Berlioz's Damnation of Faust, among other works. In 1987 the company moved to Switzerland and took the new name Béjart Ballet Lausanne. www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1B1-356915.html