One-act ballet in four scenes to the music of Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings
The ballet was first staged in 1934. This version was first performed in Perm in 2004. Running time: 32 minutes
“The ballet’s only plot is the music of the serenade — a dance under the moon, if you like” was how George Balanchine described his Serenade to Tchaikovsky’s music, tired of the endless questions from journalists trying to find a hidden meaning behind the outward simplicity of the ballet. Serenade was his first production in the USA after his emigration in 1933, when he agreed to a proposal by Lincoln Kirstein, who had a burning desire to create a school of American ballet. The choreography of Serenade was revised five times, from the original version for the School of American Ballet to the production that became part of the repertoire of the newly-formed New York City Ballet, and Balanchine subsequently rewrote the choreography on several occasions. In its current form the ballet consists of four parts: Sonatina, Waltz, Russian Dance, and Elegy.
The ballet is staged in collaboration with the George Balanchine Foundation in accordance with Balanchine’s style and technique