Accident Sets Path for Dance Legend Edward Villella O


ne ofAmerica’smost celebratedmale ballet dancers, Edward Villella, began his dance training as the result of amishap. Edwardwas knocked out by a baseballwhile playingwith


friends.Afterwards, hismother took seven year-old Edwardwith her during his sister’s dance lessons. Young Edward soon began taking class, and at age 10, Edward and his sister continued their ballet stud- ies atGeorge Balanchine’s School ofAmerican Ballet (SAB).


Edward’s dreamwas to become a professional dancer, but his father demanded he go to college. Four years later, Edward graduated from NewYorkMaritimeAcademy,while lettering in baseball and emerg- ing as awelterweight boxing champion. But the drawof the dance floorwas toomuch, and Edwardwas soon sneaking off to dance class.


Pictured:EdwardVillella coachingBaryshnikov in rehearsal


Hewould return to SAB, after a four-year absence in training. Balanchine offered hima positionwith theNewYork City Ballet (NYCB) in 1957. Edwardwas promoted to soloist one year later, and by 1960was a principal dancer.


His position offered himthe opportunity toworkwith two incredible choreographers,George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins, and hewas the originalmale lead inmany important ballets in theNYCB reper- toire, including Tarantella, the “Rubies” section of Jewels,Harlequinade, Symphony in ThreeMovements,Dances at aGathering,Watermill, Bugaku, and AMidsummerNight’sDream, asOberon. One of hismost famous roleswas in the 1960 revival of Balanchine’s 1929masterpiece, Prodigal Son.His physicality quite simply “changed thewaymen danced inAmerica and theway theywere perceived.”


During Edward’s dance career, he toured extensively, andworked to bring greater exposure to ballet through television.He danced in two television versions of TheNutcracker, a ballet filmversion of A MidsummerNight’sDream, and in a 1966 TV production of Brigadoon. During the 1960s, he and his dancing partner, PatriciaMcBride, often appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show.


His influence on his television audiences is not to be understated. Kathy Chamberlain, founder and artistic director of Chamberlain PerformingArts, credits Villellawith her interest in ballet. “I sawhim on The Ed Sullivan Show.He and his dance partner, PatriciaMcBride, mademewant to dance. Theyweremy first inspiration.”


Edward hadmany firsts in his dancing career.Hewas the first Americanmale dancer to performwith the RoyalDanish Ballet.He was the onlyAmerican ever to be asked to dance an encore at the Bolshoi Theater inMoscow.He danced for PresidentKennedy’s inau- guration and for Presidents Johnson,Nixon, and Ford. He has been honored by President Johnson, theKennedy Center, President Clinton, and in 1999, TheDanceHeritage Coalition named himas one of the first 100 ofAmerica’s IrreplaceableDance Treasures.He was also awarded a fellowship to theAcademy ofArts and Sciences in 2009.


After retiring as a dancer, Villella turned his passion for dance into a passion for direction, beginning as an artistic coordinator for Eglevsky Ballet, then artistic director for BalletOklahoma (nowOklahoma City Ballet), and finally, FoundingArtisticDirector ofMiami City Ballet. Hewould go on to buildMiami City Ballet into an internationally renowned companywith aworld class repertory.


DANCE!NORTHTEXAS a publication of the dance council of north texas vol 18 • no. 4 www.thedancecouncil.org Nov.-Jan. 2016 page 21


He and hiswife, Linda Carbonetto, a former CanadianOlympic figure skater,moved back to his nativeNewYork City in 2012.He currently serves on the Board of Trustees of the School ofAmerican Ballet.


InMarch of 2016, ballet loverswill have the opportunity to takemas- ter classes fromEdward Villellawhen he is brought to Plano to teach master classes at Chamberlain PerformingArts. “The chance to study with a ballet icon, such as Edward Villella, is unparalleled” exalted CarterAlexander,AssociateArtisticDirector of Chamberlain, and for- mer School Principal of Edward’sMiami City Ballet. “His journey is such an amazing story.”


Formore information on the amazing Edward Villella, pick up a copy of his 1992 autobiography, Prodigal Son:Dancing for Balanchine in a World of Pain andMagic,writtenwith LarryKaplan.


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