11.21.07: A Centennial Celebration | New York Social Diary

A Centennial Celebration

Feeding time in the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir. 1:45 PM. Photo: JH.

Last night over at the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center, the New York City Ballet held its opening night gala The program was “Dancing for Lincoln; a Centennial Celebration.” Lincoln in this case was Lincoln Kirstein who would have been 100 this year. He died eleven years ago. Mr. Kirstein and George Balanchine started the School for American Ballet and subsequently the New York City Ballet.

The opening night at the ballet is a glamorous affair. Last night’s chairs were Candace and Fredericke Beinecke, Carol Mack, Barbara and John Vogelstein and Linda Wells. Then there were the Opening Night Gala “Ambassadors.” I’m not quite sure what their role was but possibly it was hosting the tables for dinner afterwards. They were: Kate Betts, Candace Bushnell, Alba Clemente, Robert Couturier, Fe Saracino Fendi, Nina Griscom, Gillian Miniter, Charlotte Moss, Lindsey and Eri Nederlander, Xenia Krinitzky Roff, Allison Sarofim, Barbara Cirkva Schumacher, Alexandra Shiva, and Susan Tabak.

It was a black tie evening, and very dressy for the ladies. The fabled Valentino was present as well, with his partner Giancarlo Giametti. The now legendary high fashion team always add glamour wherever they go, so European, suave, chic, elegant – and all kinda thrown away, like movie stars. The Italians have so much style.


	Two of the evening's co-chairs: Carol Mack and Linda Wells

I was reminded of a moment many years ago one weekday afternoon on the corner of 59th Street and Fifth Avenue, where two men, very familiar to the eye, were standing together waiting for the light to change in order to cross. They were beautifully turned out in blue serge, blue shirts and ties and dark brown suede shoes. One man was short with a drooping chin a bit like Alfred Hitchcock, and a very large round commanding belly covered by his impeccably-cut doubled breasted jacket. The other man was black haired, handsome and looked about as cool as you could be; and famous: Marcello Mastroianni and his mentor, director Federico Fellini. Style everywhere. Valentino and Giametti have that, and there it was last night during the intermission.

The program opened with “Garland Dance and Rose Adagio from Tschaikovsky’s “The Sleeping Beauty;” a clip from an upcoming film version of NY Export: Opus Jazz, music by Robert Prince (choreographed by Jerome Robbins); followed by “Liturgy” (choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon) and then Highlights from “Western Symphony,” Traditional American melodies orchestrated by Hershy Kay (Balanchine choreography). After the intermission we had the world premiere of “Grazioso” with music by Mikhail Glinka from A Life for the Tasar and Russlan and Ludmilla (Peter Martins choreography).

And then came 154 performers from the Company and the School of American Ballet on stage dancing in honor of Lincoln Kirstein’s birthday. There was a film clip of the man – towering over Mr. Balanchine, a bear of a man, every bit as commanding as his profile – on the stage of the theater about 20 years ago on opening night. Everyone sang “Happy Birthday” to him. Then they sang it again last night in the theater.

In the glittering crowd, besides the aforementioned: actor Michael Fox, Sandy Hill and Tom Ditmer, Leonel Piraino and Nina Griscom, Gilliant Atfield, Charles Askegard, Susan Baker and Michael Lynch, David and Julia Koch, Tom and Caroline Dean, Susan Fales-Hill, Gene and Gretchen Grisanti, Diana and Dick Beattie, Vera and Donald Blinken, Randy Bourscheidt, Estrellita and Dan Brodsky, Patsy and Jeff Tarr, Natalie Geary, Lucia Hwong Gordon, Efraim Grinberg and Ellen Schoni, Doug Hannant and Fred Anderson, Bruce Hoeksema, Alex Hitz, Marlene Hess and Jim Zirin, Peggy Siegal, Perri Peltz, Arie and Coco Kopelman, Jeff and Liz Lange, Karin Luter, Paul LeClerc and Judith Ginsberg, Catherine Malandrino, Liz and Jeff Peek, Anabel and Alberto Mariaca, Fe Fendi, Bebe Neuwirth, Dailey and Gordon Pattee, Rachel Roy, Denise and Andrew Saul, Carlos Souza, Lesley Stahl and Aaron Latham, Sheila and George Stephenson, Laurie and John Sykes. Kimba Wood and Frank Richardson, Sydney and Sue Ann Weinberg, Giles Mendel, Gillian and Sylvester Miniter, Amy Fine Collins, Brad Comisar and on and on into the brilliant evening.

Lincoln Kirstein was a very notable force in New York City and therefore national cultural life. He achieved a position of prominence arguably beyond compare in New York culture. He turned out to be a man of great vision, and a leader neither politically nor financially, but decisive in the community. He was the son of a wealthy businessman/retailer from Boston (Filene’s). He was well educated, comfortably provided for, had a businessman’s drive and an artist’s dream. The result, ultimately, is where we were and what we saw last night.

In the second half of the evening, they opened with a large photographic portrait of the man suspended above the stage; a profile of the man at a later age. He had a good head. He was handsome but sternly serious looking, the kind who could intimidate with his presence and a glance. He had a very pronounced but strong nose, sharp eyes and dark eyebrows. He could have been mistaken for a banker. And fearsome too, no doubt. He also had certainty written all over him. Younger photos shown afterwards showed that he always had all of these characteristics on his countenance.

A Life for the Tsar. New York City Ballet ( ©Paul Kolnick).

He had a dream of an American ballet where the dancers would be trained and schooled here by the world’s greatest ballet masters. This was in the 1920s and this had never been done before in this country. He wanted the ballet company to have a modern repertory. He didn’t want to rely on European or “imported” artists to perform.

He met George Balanchine in 1933, at the height of the Depression when Balanchine was working for the Ballets Russes. They showed a clip last night of Balanchine recalling that meeting at a big party.

"I met a man. It was at Lady Cunard's or something, cocktail party. We had, we were all together, close, and a tall man from, uh....looked at me and said "What are you going to do?" and I said "Me? I'm going to try to get to America because there's nothing to do here", and he said "I'll get you there." And I said, "Who are you?", and he said "I am American", and that was Lincoln."

Balanchine, who was four years older than Kirstein, was schooled at the Imperial School of Ballet in St. Petersburg. He left Russia in 1920 after the Bolshleviks came to power. He went to work for Diaghilev at the Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo.

Menu for New York City Ballet Opening Night Benefit Dinner by Glorious Foods

Vegetable Timbale with Tomato, Eggplant, Portobello Mushroom and Baked Chevre

Roasted Filet of Beef, 21 Club Sauce, Baby rtichokes, Green Peas, Asparagus, Tips, Puree of Rutabaga

Hot Apple Charlotte/Ginger Ice Cream

Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio 2006
Moueix Merlot 2003
Domaine Chandon Grut

The Balanchine/Kirstein collaboration began with the School. It was not an easy task to get started. The ballet company didn’t emerge until after the Second World War. By then the School was going and Kirstein knew what he had and what he could do. When he got some financial offers to build the ballet company, he was ready.

Those of us who have no interest or only a passing interest in cultural enterprises like a ballet company, for example, don’t consider the enormous undertaking it takes, and the massive financial production that must be set in place to maintain itself. Lincoln Kirstein’s results were stupendous.

For years before the building of Lincoln Center they performed at New York City Center. They moved into their home in the New York State Theater in 1964. Today the company has approximately 90 dancers and is the largest dance organization in America. It has an active repertory of 150 works (principally choreographed by Balanchine – who died at 79 in 1983; Jerome Robbins – who joined the company in 1948; and Peter Martins, the current director).

The School of American Ballet, the original plan and incubator for the Company, is now one of the greatest ballet schools in the world. It has 350 students/aspiring dancers from all over the country and the world. You may have read about it on these pages before because its students are, like the school, exemplary; and an inspiration for educators anywhere.

For the rest of us, it provides a connection to a world of beauty and amazement. Sitting there in the theater last night, looking around the great hall and its four or five tiers rising from the ground floor, and the great stage, all now part of tradition and establishment, like the opera house, like the Library, like a great cathedral or university, I couldn’t help thinking of the achievement of those two men and what they built for our pleasure and our peace of mind.