From the author of the acclaimed "Everybody Was So Young," the
definitive and major biography of the great choreographer and
Broadway legend Jerome Robbins
To some, Jerome Robbins was a demanding perfectionist, a driven
taskmaster, a theatrical visionary; to others, he was a loyal
friend, a supportive mentor, a generous and entertaining companion
and colleague. Born Jerome Rabinowitz in New York City in 1918,
Jerome Robbins repudiated his Jewish roots along with his name only
to reclaim them with his triumphant staging of "Fiddler on the
Roof." A self-proclaimed homosexual, he had romances or
relationships with both men and women, some famous--like Montgomery
Clift and Natalie Wood--some less so. A resolutely unpolitical man,
he was forced to testify before Congress at the height of
anti-Communist hysteria. A consummate entertainer, he could be
paralyzed by shyness; nearly infallible professionally, he was
conflicted, vulnerable, and torn by self-doubt. Guarded and
adamantly private, he was an inveterate and painfully honest
journal writer who confided his innermost thoughts and aspirations
to a remarkable series of diaries and memoirs. With ballets like
"Dances at a Gathering," "Afternoon of a Faun," and "The Concert, "
he humanized neoclassical dance; with musicals like "On the Town,"
"Gypsy," and "West Side Story," he changed the face of theater in
America.
In the pages of this definitive biography, Amanda Vaill takes full
measure of the complicated, contradictory genius who was Jerome
Robbins. She re-creates his childhood as the only son of Russian
Jewish immigrants; his apprenticeship as a dancer and Broadway
chorus gypsy; his explosion into prominence at the age of
twenty-five with the ballet "Fancy Free" and its Broadway
incarnation, "On the Town"; and his years of creative dominance in
both theater and dance. She brings to life his colleagues and
friends--from Leonard Bernstein and George Balanchine to Robert
Wilson and Robert Graves--and his loves and lovers. And she tells
the full story behind some of Robbins's most difficult episodes,
such as his testimony before the House Un-American Activities
Committee and his firing from the film version of "West Side
Story."
Drawing on thousands of pages of documents from Robbins's personal
and professional papers, to which she was granted unfettered
access, as well as on other archives and hundreds of interviews,
"Somewhere "is a riveting narrative of a life lived onstage,
offstage, and backstage. It is also an accomplished work of
criticism and social history that chronicles one man's phenomenal
career and places it squarely in the cultural ferment of a time
when New York City was truly "a helluva town."
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
