- Glen Tetley
Glen Tetley (
2 February 1926 ,Cleveland, Ohio –26 January 2007 ,Florida ) was an American ballet and modern dancer as well as achoreographer who mixedballet andmodern dance to create a new way of looking at dance, and is best known for his piece "Pierrot Lunaire".Biography
Glenford Andrew Tetley, Jr. was born on February 3, 1926 in Cleveland, Ohio. [Allen Robertson, "Glen Tetley", in International Encyclopedia of Dance, vol. 6, ed. Selma Jeanne Cohen (New York: Oxford University Press, 1998), 145.] While in medical school, Tetley found a passion for dance. After graduating from
Franklin and Marshall College in 1946, Tetley moved toNew York City to study dance. [Allen Robertson, "Glen Tetley".] Tetley began his career as a dancer, dancing in Hanya Holm's Broadway production of "Kiss Me Kate " in 1948 and "Juno" in 1959, as well as with the New York City Opera Ballet, John Butler's American Dance Theatre, and theJoffrey Ballet where he was an original member. [Allen Robertson, "Glen Tetley"] Later on, Tetley also danced withAmerican Ballet Theatre and . [Allen Robertson, "Glen Tetley"] Tetley's choreographic style rises from his experiences with modern dance teachers likeHanya Holm andMartha Graham as well as his time with ballet teachers such asAntony Tudor and Margaret Craske. [ American Ballet Theatre, "Glen Tetley", http://www.abt.org/education/archive/choreographers/tetley_g.html. ] Because of this mix in dance education, Tetley's choreography is a distinct blend between ballet and modern dance. [ "Glen Tetley", in Encyclopedia Britannica, http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9071839/Glen-Tetley. ] Tetley wanted to achieve a mix of "modern dance's visceral earthiness with the ethereal lyricism of classical ballet". [ Michael F. Crabb, "Glen Tetley (1926-2007)," "Dance Magazine", January, 2007. ]Choreography
What made Glen Tetley stand out among other choreographers was his ability to seamlessly mix ballet and modern dance. Tetley choreographed over 50 ballets for some of the world's most famous dance companies. Glen Tetley made his choreographic premier in 1962 with [http://www.abt.org/education/archive/ballets/pierrot_lunaire.html "Pierrot Lunaire"] which he choreographed for his newly formed chamber company. [ Allen Robertson, "Glen Tetley".] Tetley based this piece on music of the same name by composer
Arnold Schoenberg . Though this piece was one of his first choreographic ventures, it is heralded by many as one of his best and most iconic. It is also here where audiences first saw his iconic mix of ballet and modern dance. [Allen Robertson, "Glen Tetley".] Other works choreographed by Tetley include: "Contredances", "Gemini", "Odalisque", "Ricercare", "Le Sacre du Printemps", "Sargasso", "Sphinx", and "Voluntaries". [ American Ballet Theatre, "Glen Tetley".] Later, Tetley moved to Europe and became the Artistic Director for the Netherlands Dance Theatre in 1969 and theStuttgart Ballet where he also danced from 1974-1976, before returning to North America to work with theNational Ballet of Canada . [ American Ballet Theatre, "Glen Tetley".] While in Europe and Canada, Tetley choreographed many new pieces such as "Alice" in 1986 for the National Ballet of Canada. [Allen Robertson, "Glen Tetley". ] At the time of his departure, many in the American dance community would either train in ballet or modern dance, but never both. Some believe that because of this rigidity and inability to accept the fusion of modern dance and ballet, Tetley moved to Europe where the atmosphere was more artistically free. [Michael F. Crabb, "Glen Tetley (1926-2007)". ]tyle
Throughout his choreography Tetley displayed "fervid intensity, sinuous nonstop propulsion, and voluptuous physicality". [Allen Robertson, "Glen Tetley". ] While Tetley does not intentionally create abstract pieces, he uses his movement in order to "convey his meditations on themes from myth, music, theater, and literature". [Allen Robertson, "Glen Tetley".]
Death
On January 26, 2007, Tetley died at the age of eighty. Dancers, such as
Karen Kain , a member of the National Ballet of Canada, remember Tetley as a choreographer who had a "ferocious demand for total artistic commitment", while David Allan recalls that Tetley "fired up your imagination and made you look at yourself differently". [Michael F. Crabb, "Glen Tetley (1926-2007)".] Among the members of his chamber company wasChristopher Bruce , the lead in his signature work, "Pierrot Lunaire" who cites Tetley as one of his inspirations. On the whole, Tetley was not only a strong dancer, but he was also a passionate choreographer who created works that have now become classics due to his ability to take ballet and modern dance and combine them to create his own unique style.References
External links
*http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/30/arts/dance/30tetley.html
*http://www.guardian.co.uk/obituaries/story/0,,2001638,00.html
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