cover image The Ballets of Antony Tudor: Studies in Psyche and Satire

The Ballets of Antony Tudor: Studies in Psyche and Satire

Judith Chazin-Bennahum. Oxford University Press, USA, $35 (336pp) ISBN 978-0-19-507186-3

Choreographer Tudor (1908-1987) chose the language of classical ballet as a means of original, nuanced comment on issues ranging from love and troubled families to sex crimes and rape as a weapon of war; he also made funny, satirical dances. Chazin-Bennahum, a professor of theater arts at the University of New Mexico who began her association with Tudor in 1959, provides the first comprehensive volume on his life's work. It is a valuable one, chronicling the work of one of the century's most influential, if erratic, choreographers in clear, evocative descriptions of the dances and sharp interpretation. Tudor began his career in London with Marie Rambert in the 1930s, then traveled to New York City and established a durable relation with the soon-to-be American Ballet Theatre, contributing such ballets as Pillar of Fire (1942). He resisted repeating himself, although his career was undermined by long fallow periods. The book also recognizes Tudor as a ``nourishing'' educator of two decades' standing at Manhattan's Julliard School and elsewhere. Offering analysis and appreciation in equal part, Chazin-Bennahum's study should help extend the life of Tudor's ballets in repertories around the world. Illustrations not seen by PW. (Mar.)