American Ballet Theatre

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE, famous for its use of various ballet techniques, including Imperial Russian, American folk, and hi-tech contemporary, was founded in 1937 as the Mordkin Ballet, and reorganized as the Ballet Theatre in 1940 under the direction of Lucia Chase. Headed by Chase until her replacement by Mikhail Baryshnikov in 1980, the company became the American Ballet Theatre (ABT) in 1956. In 1960 the ABT was the first American ballet company to dance in the Soviet Union. Unlike the New York City Ballet Company, the ABT brought in foreign stars as compliments to its American corps. It also featured the work of such choreographers as Agnes de Mille, Jerome Robbins, and Twyla Tharp.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Jacobs, Laura. "The ABT at Fifty." The New Leader 73, no. 4 (1990): 21–23.

Kaye, Elizabeth. American Ballet Theatre: A 25-Year Retrospective. New York: Columbia University Press, 1999.

Jennifer Harrison

See also Ballet ; Dance ; New York City Ballet .