Photo by Martha Swope, 1958. From Edward Villella's autobiography Prodigal Son: Dancing for Balanchine in a World of Pain and Magic "One day Balanchine stopped me and matter-of-factly told me that I was going to be the understudy for Todd Bolender in Agon. I thought this was terrible news. Agon was probably the single most complicated work in the history of classical dance up to then. I was still trying to adjust to the sounds of the music. It was the first time I had been ex

“The pas de deux with Titania and bottom in the donkey’s head is the jewel at the heart of the ballet. It is Balanchine’s triumph as a...

[31/50] Richard Rapp as Candy Cane. Photo by Martha Swope.

(2/12) Here are additional photos from the original 1962 production. When Balanchine was a child, he was an elf in a production of...

(1/12) Twelve performances of A Midsummer Night’s Dream begins today! These first two posts feature photos from the original production...