George Balanchine
George Balanchine
George Balanchinewas one of the 20th century's most prominent choreographers. Styled as the father of American ballet, he co-founded the New York City Ballet and remained its Artistic Director for more than 35 years...
NationalityRussian
ProfessionChoreographer
Date of Birth22 January 1904
CitySaint Petersburg, Russia
CountryRussian Federation
beauty lucky
First comes the sweat. Then comes the beauty - if you're very lucky and have said your prayers.
assemble dancers everywhere god steal
God creates, I do not create. I assemble and I steal everywhere to do it - from what I see, from what the dancers can do, from what others do.
hard-work years giving
If you don't feel challenged, it's because you're not doing enough. Ballet should never feel comfortable. Comfortable is lazy! If you're comfortable when you dance, you're not pushing yourself hard enough. 100 % is not enough. You have to give 200%. One tendu takes years of hard work and will never be perfect. Everything in ballet is a challenge.
saving holding-back another-time
Why are you stingy with yourselves? Why are you holding back? What are you saving for—for another time? There are no other times. There is only now. Right now.
dance ballet-class play
Dancers are instruments, like a piano the choreographer plays.
dance men firsts
In my ballets, woman is first. Men are consorts. God made men to sing the praises of women. They are not equal to men: They are better.
dance prayer sweat
First comes the sweat. Then comes the beauty if you're very lucky and have said your prayers.
dance teacher years
One is born to be a dancer. No teacher can work miracles, nor will years of training make a good dancer of an untalented pupil. One may be able to acquire a certain technical facility, but no one can ever 'acquire an exceptional talent.' I have never prided myself on having an unusually gifted pupil. A Pavlova is no one's pupil but God's.
two dancer stories
Storyless is not abstract. Two dancers on the stage are enough material for a story; for me, they are already a story in themselves
heard
Music must be seen, and dance must be heard
beautiful dance flower
The ballet is a purely female thing; it is a woman, a garden of beautiful flowers, and man is the gardener.
dance girl men
Put a man and a girl on stage and there is already a story; a man and two girls, there's already a plot.
moving listening firsts
I cannot move, I cannot even want to move, unless I hear the music first.
dance stealing ballet-teachers
God creates, I do not create. I assemble and I steal everywhere to do it - from what I see, from what the dancers can do, from what others do...