Walter Terry: "Sheer delight. Last evening's audience guffawed, sighed, and cheered as the ballet progressed along an unexpected route from horseplay through tender romance to a flamboyant, circuslike finish. The fun is spontaneous and not at all contrived, the romantic section is fresh yet easy in its movement patterns, and the closing polonaise incorporates practically every known trick for bringing down the house. Harold Lang, Tanaquil LeClercq, Nicholas Magallanes, Maria

“In [the final] scene [of Firebird], the music swells to a glorious finish, but since there’s no movement, and all is still, it’s as if...

“In [the final] scene [of Firebird], the music swells to a glorious finish, but since there’s no movement, and all is still, it’s as if...

Bourrée Fantasque was choreographed by Balanchine in 1949 and was described by Nancy Reynolds (affiliate link) as, “melodious, colorful,...

Jerome Robbins: "One should feel immediately that the three are good friends, used to bumming around together, used to each other’s...

“The ballet was made for Maria, and she went after it like a demon, as if possessed, with ferocity. That is certainly one of Balanchine’s...

As Tallchief remembered from her stage vantage: “A firestorm of applause erupted in the City Center, and the audience was on its feet...