About Suzanne Farrell

Suzanne Farrell was one of George Balanchine's most celebrated muses and remains a legendary figure in the ballet world. She joined George Balanchine's New York City Ballet in the fall of 1961. Her unique combination of musical, physical and dramatic gifts quickly ignited Balanchine's imagination, and by the mid 1960s she had become not only one of his most renowned ballerinas but also a symbol of the era.

By the time she retired from the stage in 1989, Ms. Farrell had achieved a career that was without precedent or parallel in the history of ballet. During her 28 years on the stage, she danced a repertory of more than 100 ballets, nearly a third of which were created expressly for her by Balanchine and other choreographers, such as Jerome Robbins and Maurice Béjart.

Ms. Farrell is also a repetiteur for The George Balanchine Trust, the institution that disseminates, preserves and protects the works of George Balanchine. She has served in a variety of cultural and philanthropic organizations such as the New York State Council on the Arts, the Arthritis Foundation, the Professional Children's School and the Princess Grace Foundation. Her autobiography, Holding On to the Air, was published in 1990 and has been reissued by the University Press of Florida. The film Suzanne Farrell - Elusive Muse (directed by Anne Belle and Deborah Dickson) was nominated for an Academy Award in 1997 as Best Feature Length Documentary.

As the Kennedy Center's ballet emissary, she founded The Suzanne Farrell Ballet, which made its debut in the fall of 2000 during the Kennedy Center's Balanchine Celebration. The Suzanne Farrell Ballet aims to develop dancers in the Balanchine style through Ms. Farrell's unique perspective, and to present performances and outreach programs that perpetuate the artistic legacy of Ms. Farrell's mentors. Since 1993 ballet students from around the country have descended upon the nation's capital for three weeks of study at the Kennedy Center with the Exploring Ballet with Suzanne Farrell intensive.

Since the fall of 2000, Ms. Farrell has held the Francis Eppes Chair of the Arts at Florida State University, where she is a tenured professor. She is the recipient of honorary degrees from Harvard, Yale, Notre Dame, Georgetown University and others. In November 2003 she was awarded the National Medal of the Arts. The following year, Ms. Farrell was presented with the Nijinsky Award at the 2004 Monaco Dance Forum. In June 2005 at The Suzanne Farrell Ballet's Kennedy Center premiere of Balanchine's Don Quixote, Ms. Farrell was presented the 54th Capezio Dance Award. In December 2005 Ms. Farrell was the recipient of one of the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors.

Updated May 2007