In honor of the Centenary of George Balanchine's birth we are offering a special edition of the book
BY GEORGE BALANCHINE
George Balanchine long maintained that he was "born to be silent." As a musician and a dancer he had an instinctive bias against language as the vehicle for ideas: "With words you never get anywhere."
Yet Balanchine was not absolutely a silent man. He spoke with his dancers in colorful, practical, professional jargon. Economical and to the point, his instructions were often wonderfully vivid: "Hold the air," He urged one ballerina. "Slide like rubber," he coaxed a budding Apollo.
These small fragments are for the most part lost, ephemera from the world of theater. However, Balanchine did leave an offstage treasury as well. He was usually reticent, but on the occasion that he did speak publicly, he expressed himself well.
His inherent mistrust of words precludes a sustained or lengthy credo, yet throughout his public statements are telling comments, a treasure trove of rich and thoughtful nuggets. Gathered here, informally, are a few of those comments: explanations and observations than span nearly fifty years of one of the greatest artists of our time – all with his own words, words that are, by George Balanchine.
CONTAINS 90 QUOTES BY GEORGE BALANCHINE!
AVAILABLE AT VARIOUS RETAIL LOCATIONS OR BY CONTACTING: [email protected].
(A generous portion from the sale of each book will be donated to The George Balanchine Foundation)
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