All in the Dances: A Brief Life of George Balanchine

Twenty years after his death, George Balanchine still dominates the world of ballet. Not only have his works been danced by the New York City Ballet continuously since 1948, but they also have been performed by more than two dozen other companies throughout the world. In clear and elegant writing, Terry Teachout brings to life the dramatic story of George Balanchine, a Russian émigré who fell in love with American culture, married four times and kept a mistress on the side, and transformed the art of ballet forever.Martha Graham said that watching George Balanchine choreograph a ballet was like watching light pass through a prism. The music passes through him, and in the same natural yet marvelous way that a prism refracts light, he refracts music into dance. Two decades after his death, the ruthless, enigmatic founder of N.Y. City Ballet still dominates the world of dance. He worked with Serge Diaghilev -- and Sam Goldwyn. He made ballets to the music of Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky -- and to The Stars & Stripes Forever. His plotless, seemingly abstract dances were as romantic as the genius who made them. Here is the dramatic story of the greatest choreographer -- and why his ballets will be even more significant in the century to come. Illus.