Article Abstract:
A. Everett Austin, Jr., known as 'Chick,' promoted ballet in Hartford, Connecticut, through his position as museum director of the Wadsworth Atheneum from 1927-1944. Austin acquired Serge Lifar's collection of designs for the Ballets Russes and helped make it possible for the choreographer George Balanchine to come to America. He attempted to start a ballet company and school in conjunction with the Atheneum. Austin was anti-intellectual, enjoyed amateur theatricals, and was interested in ephemeral arts such as dancing.
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Article Abstract:
A letter to Time magazine defends the 1936 production of 'Orpheus and Eurydice' performed by the American Ballet Theater company. The production by Balanchine is defended as an imaginative adaptation of a classic ballet and the only original ballet undertaken by the Metropolitan Opera Association during the spring 1936 season. Time magazine is taken to task for allowing its writers to criticize 'Orpheus and Eurydice' rather than reporting the public response to the performance.
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Article Abstract:
Balanchine's adaptation of Gluck's 'Orpheus and Eurydice' was the culmination of an 'experimental' spring season of 1936 for the American Ballet. Orpheus was depicted as the embodiment of a male angel with real muscles for flying and real feather wings as opposed to using a girl androgyne. The Metropolitan Opera Association, which sponsored the season, objected to Balanchine's suggestion to use a tenor for the singer who performed the role of Orpheus.
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