Tarantella ballet youtube biography

1964 ballet by George Balanchine

Tarantella is a ballet choreographed by George Balanchine to Grande Tarantelle by Louis Moreau Gottschalk, arranged by Hershy Kay.

The ballet premiered on January 7, 1964, at the New York City Center, performed by New York City Ballet's Patricia McBride and Edward Villella.^[1]

Production

George Balanchine originally created Tarantella, a pas de deux, to showcase New York City Ballet dancers Patricia McBride and Edward Villella's techniques, especially the latter's speed and jumps.^[2][4] According to Villella, Balanchine created Tarantella between rehearsals of his other works, and each time they would only work on small sections and not in order.

Villella only realized the stamina required when Balanchine put all the choreography together. He later recalled, "I would be flying parallel to the floor, and then I would be in the wings, on the ground, gasping for air".New York Times cr