Balanchine: New York City Ballet in Montreal, Vol.4 (DVD)

Pre-order your copy now! Ships September 9, 2014

VAI’s acclaimed series of historic New York City Ballet performances continues with two Balanchine gems from a 1964 Radio-Canada telecast: The Four Temperaments, which premiered in 1946 and is set to a score for orchestra and solo piano that Balanchine commissioned from Paul Hindemith; and Ivesiana, danced to four short pieces by Charles Ives, which premiered shortly after the composer’s death in 1954. This volume includes a delightful three-minute choreographed introduction of the illustrious dancers, set to music, in which Balanchine himself participates. The DVD concludes with Jacques d’Amboise and Tanaquil Le Clercq in a 1955 performance of Afternoon Of A Faun, a 1953 work by Jerome Robbins, whom Balanchine had named Associate Artistic Director of New York City Ballet in 1949. In contrast to Nijinsky’s 1912 ballet based on the same music, which depicted a lusty faun and nymphs, the innovative version by Robbins explores the subtle eroticism in the interaction between two dancers, set in a contemporary rehearsal studio.
Black & white, 65 minutes, 4:3, NTSC (Playable all regions)

THE FOUR TEMPERAMENTS
Choreography by George Balanchine
Music by Paul Hindemith
Dancers: Carol Sumner, William Weslow, Marnee Morris, Earle Sieveling, Suki Schorer, Ramon Segarra, Richard Rapp, Kay Mazzo, Bettijane Sills, Patricia Wilde, Anthony Blum, Arthur Mitchell, Patricia Neary (1964)

IVESIANA
Choreography by George Balanchine
Music by Charles Ives
Dancers: Sara Leland and Francisco Moncion, Suki Schorer, Deni Lamont, Patricia Neary, Arthur Mitchell (1964)

AFTERNOON OF A FAUN
Choreography by Jerome Robbins
Music by Claude Debussy
Dancers: Tanaquil Le Clercq and Jacques d’Amboise (1955)