Balanchine Catalogue Archive
Search by title, year, composer, cast or production details.
379. Pulcinella 1972
- Music
Igor Stravinsky (Pulcinella: Ballet with Song in One Act after Pergolesi, 1919-20)
- Choreography
George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins
- Production
Scenery and costumes by Eugene Berman. Scenery executed by Nolan Scenery Studios. Lighting by Ronald Bates. Masks and props by Kermit Love
- Premiere
June 23, 1972, New York City Ballet with children from the School of American Ballet, New York State Theater. Conductor: Robert Irving
- Cast
Pulcinella, Edward Villella; Girl, Violette Verdy; Pulcinella’s Father, Michael Arshansky; Devil, Francisco Moncion, Shaun O’Brien; Beggars, George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins; Concubines, 2 men; 2 Policemen; Little Boy; 6 Musicians; Townspeople, 7 women, 5 men; Pulcinellas, Deni Lamont, Robert Weiss, 10 men, 12 children
Performance Type
Ballet
Note
Included in the Stravinsky Festival. Balanchine created a libretto of his own, working with Robbins. Beginning with Pulcinella’s funeral procession, the ballet depicts his resurrection through a pact with the devil, his continued career of mockery, petty crime, and debauchery, his defeat of the devil at a spaghetti feast, and a celebration of his victory by dancing. Pulcinella was first choreographed by Léonide Massine in 1920 for Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes. (See FESTIVALS DIRECTED BY BALANCHINE.)
Additional Productions
Revisions
New York City Ballet: Numerous early revisions. Very soon after premiere, Berman decor substantially reduced.
