Born in St. Petersburg in 1904, George Balanchine – his name was actually Georgi Melitonovich Balantchivadse – studied at the Imperial ballet academy. In 1924 he did not return to Russia from a European tour of Soviet star dancers. He worked as a choreograph for the Ballets Russes, founded by his fellow countryman Diaghilev, and, along with Igor Stravinsky, left his unmistakable mark on the evolution of the modern ballet. The world premiere of “Apollon musagète” in 1928 was considered as the beginning of the modern era in the ballet world. In 1934 Balanchine went to the U.S., where he first led the American School of Ballet and, in 1948, founded the New York City Ballet, which achieved international fame as “his” troupe. Of Balanchine’s more than 400 works, including the choreographies for musicals and operas, pieces such as “Serenade” (1934), “Concerto barocco” (1941), “The Four Temperaments” (1946), “Agon” (1957), “Violin concerto” (1972) and “Davidsbündlertänze” (1980) are regarded as masterworks of the dance in the 20th century. George Balanchine died in New York on 30 April 1983.