In Balanchine's Company: A Dancer's Memoir
Fisher danced for the great choreographer George Balanchine in the mid–20th century, when the New York City Ballet was still "exploding into being against all odds." Her era is that ofOrpheus,theNutcrackerandAgon(she was one of its original dancers), when the company starred ballerinas Maria Tallchief and Tanaquil Le Clerq. Mr. B., as he was respectfully yet affectionately called by his dancers, was still young, still approachable, full of vigor and good humor. We see his "multi-dimensional alertness," and also his sense of whimsy and genuine affection for his dancers. Where else do we find a limerick written by Balanchine about his Vespa, his entreaties to Fisher to perform a questionable song written on tour at a big benefit and his defense of the author's right to read bad science fiction? Yet woven into these personal and telling recollections are wonderfully astute looks at Balanchine's artistic process and the place of his ballets in the canon of 20th-century art. Fisher eventually became a professor of English at the City College of New York, and her observations as both dancer and literary critic are unparalleled. This book is indispensable for lovers of ballet and theater. 48 b&w photos.(Oct.)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.