''Brahms/Handel'' is a ballet made by

New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company' ...

ballet master

Jerome Robbins Jerome Robbins (born Jerome Wilson Rabinowitz; October 11, 1918 – July 29, 1998) was an American dancer, choreographer, film director, theatre director and producer who worked in classical ballet, on stage, film, and television. Among his nu ...

in collaboration with

Twyla Tharp Twyla Tharp (; born July 1, 1941) is an American dancer, choreographer, and author who lives and works in New York City. In 1966 she formed the company Twyla Tharp Dance. Her work often uses classical music, jazz, and contemporary pop music. Fr ...

to Brahms' ''

Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel The ''Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel'', Op. 24, is a work for solo piano written by Johannes Brahms in 1861. It consists of a set of twenty-five variations and a concluding fugue, all based on a theme from George Frideric Handel ...

'', Op. 24 (1861), orchestrated by

Edmund Rubbra Edmund Rubbra (; 23 May 190114 February 1986) was a British composer. He composed both instrumental and vocal works for soloists, chamber groups and full choruses and orchestras. He was greatly esteemed by fellow musicians and was at the peak o ...

. The premiere took place Thursday, June 7, 1984 at the

New York State Theater The David H. Koch Theater is a theater for ballet, modern and other forms of dance, part of the Lincoln Center, at the intersection of Columbus Avenue and 63rd Street in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. Originally ...

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 milli ...

, with costumes by

Oscar de la Renta Óscar Arístides Renta Fiallo (22 July 1932 – 20 October 2014), known professionally as Oscar de la Renta, was a Dominican fashion designer. Born in Santo Domingo, he was trained by Cristóbal Balenciaga and Antonio del Castillo. De la Renta ...

and lighting by

Jennifer Tipton Jennifer Tipton (born September 11, 1937) is an award winning American lighting designer. She has designed for dance, theater, and opera. She is known for working on many productions of American Ballet Theatre. Life and career Tipton was born in ...

Casts

Original

Merrill Ashley Linda Michelle Merrill (born December 2, 1950), known professionally as Merrill Ashley, is an American former ballet dancer and '' répétiteur''. She joined the New York City Ballet in 1967, was promoted to principal dancer in 1977, and retired ...

* Maria Calegari *

Ib Andersen Ib Andersen (born 14 December 1954) is a Danish ballet dancer, choreographer, and painter. Biography Early days Born in Copenhagen, Andersen was first exposed to dance through ballroom dancing. At age 7, he was accepted into the Royal Dani ...

* Bart Cook

NYCB revivals

2008 Spring — ''Jerome Robbins celebration''

::''first cast'' *

Ashley Bouder Ashley Bouder (; born December 10, 1983) is an American ballet dancer who is currently a principal dancer at the New York City Ballet. She also founded and currently runs her own project, The Ashley Bouder Project. Early life Ashley Bouder was ...

first time in rôle * Wendy Whelan *

Philip Neal Philip H. Neal (born in Richmond, Virginia) was a principal dancer with New York City Ballet. Career He studied from age 11 at the Richmond Ballet School. After studying there, Edward Villella arranged a summer scholarship for him at NCYB's School ...

* Andrew Veyette ::''second cast'' * Abi Stafford *

Sara Mearns Sara Ann Mearns (born 19 January 1986) is an American ballet dancer. She is a principal dancer at New York City Ballet. Early life Mearns was born in Columbia, South Carolina. Her mother is a nurse. At age three, she began dancing with Ann Brodi ...

* Gonzalo Garcia *

Jared Angle This is a list of New York City Ballet dancers. Principal dancers Soloists This is a list of New York City Ballet soloists. Corps de ballet The following is a list of the current members of the corps de ballet. * Victor Abreu * Devin Albe ...

Footnotes

References

*'' Playbill'', NYCB, Sunday, June 22, 2008

Articles

NY Times

Anna Kisselgoff Anna Kisselgoff (born 12 January 1938) is a dance critic and cultural news reporter for ''The New York Times''. She began at the ''Times'' as a dance critic and cultural news reporter in 1968, and became its Chief Dance Critic in 1977, a role she h ...

, November 13, 1983
Sunday NY Times

, April 22, 1984

Reviews

NY Times

, June 9, 1984
NY Times

Alastair Macaulay Alastair Macaulay is an English writer and dance critic. He was the chief dance critic for '' The New York Times'' from 2007 until he retired in 2018. He was previously chief dance critic at '' The Times'' and Literary Supplement and chief theater ...

, June 24, 2008 {{DEFAULTSORT:Brahms Handel Ballets by Jerome Robbins Ballets by Twyla Tharp Ballets to the music of Johannes Brahms Ballets to the music of George Frideric Handel 1984 ballet premieres Ballets designed by Jennifer Tipton Ballets designed by Oscar de la Renta