The Man Behind The Curtain: Life And Times Of George Balanchine
English, Biographical Research Paper
The Man Behind the Curtain: The Life and Times of George Balanchine The founder and Ballet Master of the New York City Ballet. The father of American ballet. The best choreographer of the twentieth century. George Balanchine carries all these impressive titles and more, yet still, almost no one today knows his name. He was the unseen puppeteer of the NYCB, the man who was admired but unknown. Those lucky dancers he trained went on to become the biggest ballet stars of their time, and his beautiful dances were and are still performed all over the world, yet most of the people who watch them have no idea who the genius was who made them. George Balanchine was and still is the star of the ballet world, the man who breathed life …show more content…
His parents and older sister lived precarious, middle class artists’ lives until 1901, when the father, Meliton Antonovich Balanchivadze, struck it rich in the Russian state lottery. For several years, the Balanchivadzes enjoyed relatively wealthy surroundings, paid for by their new 200,000 ruble bank account—however, it didn’t last long. Meliton was not the best businessman, and he quickly frittered away his small fortune on houses, unreasonable business projects, and investments. Shortly after Georgi was born, the family was thrown back into the middle-class pool, with only their second house in Finland as a reminder of their brief bout of riches. However, just beause they were on the poorer end of the city didn't mean that Balanchine loved it any less. He had great love for his native city later in his life, saying that "Petersburg is a European city that arose in Russia by miracle." However, His love for his city couldn't change the family
The Man Behind the Curtain: The Life and Times of George Balanchine The founder and Ballet Master of the New York City Ballet. The father of American ballet. The best choreographer of the twentieth century. George Balanchine carries all these impressive titles and more, yet still, almost no one today knows his name. He was the unseen puppeteer of the NYCB, the man who was admired but unknown. Those lucky dancers he trained went on to become the biggest ballet stars of their time, and his beautiful dances were and are still performed all over the world, yet most of the people who watch them have no idea who the genius was who made them. George Balanchine was and still is the star of the ballet world, the man who breathed life …show more content…
His parents and older sister lived precarious, middle class artists’ lives until 1901, when the father, Meliton Antonovich Balanchivadze, struck it rich in the Russian state lottery. For several years, the Balanchivadzes enjoyed relatively wealthy surroundings, paid for by their new 200,000 ruble bank account—however, it didn’t last long. Meliton was not the best businessman, and he quickly frittered away his small fortune on houses, unreasonable business projects, and investments. Shortly after Georgi was born, the family was thrown back into the middle-class pool, with only their second house in Finland as a reminder of their brief bout of riches. However, just beause they were on the poorer end of the city didn't mean that Balanchine loved it any less. He had great love for his native city later in his life, saying that "Petersburg is a European city that arose in Russia by miracle." However, His love for his city couldn't change the family