1907-1926
Lincoln Kirstein in Rochester, age 6.
Birth
Lincoln Edward Kirstein is born in Rochester, New York, second of the three children (Mina Stein Kirstein Curtiss, George Garland Kirstein) of Louis Edward and Rose (Stein) Kirstein; named after Abraham Lincoln.
Moves to Boston
The Kirstein family moves to Boston.
Anna Pavlova and Ballet Russes Program from the November 5th, 1920 performance at Symphony Hall in Boston, Massachusetts
First Ballet
With his cousin Nathaniel Woolf attends ballet for the first time, seeing Pavlova's Boston performances.
Edward Devotion School, Brookline Massachusetts ca. 1920. Courtesy of Digital Commonwealth/Boston Public Library.
Elementary Education
Completes his elementary education at the Edward Devotion School, Brookline, Massachusetts in June.
Jame Agee, ca. 1921.
First Publication
Attends Phillips Exeter Academy, where he meets James Agee. First publication, "The Silver Fan" (a play set in Tibet), in the Phillips Exeter Monthly.
Cambridge, ca. 1920s.
Cambridge
First of regular summer visits to London and the Continent. In this and subsequent summers meets John Maynard Keynes, E.M. Forster, others of the Bloomsbury circle, and the Sitwells; attends the London seasons of Diaghilev's Ballets Russes
Berkshire School
Berkshire School, ca. 1922
Attends the Berkshire School, Sheffield, Massachusetts, where he meets George Platt Lynes.
G. I. Gurdjieff, n.d.
G. I. Gurdjieff
Meets and studies with G. I. Gurdjieff in Fontainebleau.
Charles J. Connick at work, ca. 1930. Courtesy of the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
Charles J. Connick
Works in the Boston stained-glass factory of Charles J. Connick
S. Foster Damon, ca. 1936. Courtesy of Brown University Library
Enters Harvard
Studies under S. Foster Damon, humanist and Blake scholar; is awarded a prize for freehand drawing.
Muriel Draper, 1934. Photograph by Carl Van Vechten. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Carl Van Vechten Collection.
Visits New York
Becomes active in New York. Meets Muriel Draper, Carl Van Vechten, and others.
1927-1936
The Hound & Horn: A Harvard Miscellany, September 1927
Hound and Horn
First issue of Hound & Horn, the quarterly which he founded with Varian Fry, of which he was editor with R.P. Blackmur, Bernard Bandler, A. Hyatt Mayor, Allen Tate, and Yvor Winters, and to which he contributed articles on dance, art, literature, and other subjects until its final issue in 1934. Among other contributors were Ezra Pound, T. S. Eliot, Katherine Anne Porter, James Agee, Michael Gold, Granville Hicks, Glenway Wescott, Harry Crosby, Irving Babbitt, Edmund Wilson, and E.E. Cummings.
Catalogue for Bauhaus: Weimar, 1919–23; Dessau, 1924, Harvard Society for Contemporary Art, December 1930–January 1931. Courtesy of Harvard Art Museums.
Harvard Society for Contemporary Art
With classmates John Walker III and Edward M.M. Warburg founds the Harvard Society for Contemporary Art, a precursor of New York's Museum of Modern Art. Among exhibitions were "School of Paris," "Modern German Presses," "Modern Mexican Art," "American Folk Painting," "International Photography," "The Bauhaus," Ben Shahn, Alexander Calder, Buckminster Fuller, Derain, Matisse, Picasso, and Despiau.
Serge Lifar and Felia Doubrovska in The Prodigal Son, 1929. Photograph by George Hoyningen-Huene.
Prodigal Son
Studies abroad in preparation for his Harvard dissertation on El Greco. Sees first Balanchine ballet, Prodigal Son, at a performance of Diaghilev's Ballets Russes. Is present by chance at Diaghilev's funeral in Venice.
At Harvard Library, 1930.
Graduation
Graduates from Harvard University
Cambridge, 1931, Photograph by Walker Evans, used with permission, copyright © Walker Evans Archive, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Meets Walker Evans
Meets Walker Evans, Hart Crane, W.H. Auden, Ben Shahn, and others; shares a Hudson River summer house at Snedens Landing with Archibald MacLeish.
Archibald MacLeish at the Library of Congress, 1943. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.
Archibald Macleish
Shares a Hudson River summer house at Snedens Landing with Archibald MacLeish.
Walker Evans, East River, New York City, 1929. © Walker Evans Archive, Metropolitan Museum of Art
New York
Moves to New York City
Sergei Eisenstein. Courtsey of Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Sergei Eisenstein
Meets Sergei Eisenstein and entertains him in New York.
Cover of Flesh is Heir
Flesh Is Heir
Publishes first novel, Flesh Is Heir, which includes a description of Balanchine's Prodigal Son and the funeral of Diaghilev.
Cover of Murals by American Painters and Photographers
Museum of Modern Art
Writes the catalogue introduction for the Museum of Modern Art exhibition he initiated and supervised, Murals by American Painters and Photographers.
Cover of Fokine
Michel Fokine
Begins association with Michel Fokine, which leads to the publication of Fokine (1934); meets Romola Nijinsky and begins work which leads to the publication of Nijinsky (1933).
George Balanchine, ca. 1930
Paris
Lives in Paris and meets Virgil Thomson. Taken to Pavel Tchelitchew's studio by Monroe Wheeler. Through Romola Nijinsky arranges to meet George Balanchine in London; invites Balanchine to come to America to establish a ballet school..
A. Everrett "Chick" Austin, Jr. ca. 1930
New York/Balanchine
Arrival of George Balanchine in New York; first efforts, with Edward M.M. Warburg and Vladimir Dimitriew, to found a ballet school and company at the Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford with the assistance of A. Everett Austin, Jr.
T. E. Lawrence by Howard Coster. October 13, 1931. © National Portrait Gallery, London.
T. E. Lawrence
Corresponds with T.E. Lawrence, who becomes the central figure in an unpublished novel.
School of American Ballet studio at 637 Madison Avenue. Photograph by Alfred Eisenstaedt/Pix Inc./The LIFE Picture Collection via Getty Images.
School of American Ballet
The School of American Ballet opens at 637 Madison Avenue, New York City: George Balanchine, Artistic Director and Maître de Ballet; Lincoln Kirstein, Secretary-Treasurer and Director of the Division of Theatrical Sciences.
First performance of Serenade
Serenade
The School of American Ballet opens at 637 Madison Avenue, New York City: George Balanchine, Artistic Director and Maître de Ballet; Lincoln Kirstein, Secretary-Treasurer and Director of the Division of Theatrical Sciences.
Scene from Transcendence, 1935. Courtsey of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
Transcendence
Premiere of Transcendence by the Producing Company of the School of American Ballet, Avery Memorial Theater, Hartford, Connecticut. First of a number of ballets with libretti by Kirstein.
Cover of Low Ceiling
Publications
Publication of Dance: A Short History of Classical Theatrical Dancing, and Low Ceiling, first book of poems.
Installation View of "Gaston Lachaise: Retrospective Exhibition." Photograph by Soichi Sunami. The Museum of Modern Art Archives, New York.
Gaston Lachaise
After obtaining patronage and commissions for Gaston Lachaise, arranges for a Museum of Modern Art retrospective exhibition of the sculptor's work and writes the accompanying catalogue.
"The American Ballet" at the Adelphi Theatre, 1935.
The American Ballet
First season of the American Ballet Company, founded by George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein: Adelphi Theater, New York City.
From front to back: Elena de Rivas, Charles Laskey, and Kathryn Mullowny in the 1935 American Ballet Company production of George Balanchine's Serenade. Photograph by Vandamm. Courtesy of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
First Tour
First American Ballet Company tour.
1935 Metropolitan Opera House program
Met Opera
The American Ballet Company provides the ballets for the Metropolitan Opera Association, and performs independently at the Metropolitan Opera House.
1936 Ballet Caravan program at the Dance Center of the Young Men's Hebrew Association at 92nd Street, New York City. Courtesy of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
Ballet Caravan
Organizes Ballet Caravan, a touring company of dancers from the American Ballet Company, with the intention of building a repertory of American work. First performance: Bennington College, July 17; continuing tours through 1941. Commissions include music by Elliott Carter, Paul Bowles, Robert McBride, Virgil Thomson, Aaron Copland, and Henry Brant; choreographers include Lew Christensen, Erick Hawkins, William Dollar, and Eugene Loring.
Interior of the Westport Country Playhouse, 1933.
The Would-be Gentleman
Stages the dances for Lawrence Langner's production of Molière's The Would-be Gentleman with Jimmy Savo and Ruth Weston at the Country Playhouse, Westport, Connecticut, danced by members of Ballet Caravan.
Federal Dance Theatre presents Salut au monde, choreographed by Helen Tamiris and adapted from a poem by Walt Whitman, 1937. Cover design by Richard Halls. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.
Federal Dance Theatre
Appointed head of the Works Projects Administration Federal Dance Theatre; through Walker Evans' introduction discusses art programs with Harry L. Hopkins, administrator of the WPA.
1937-1946
Cover of Program for The American Ballet Company Stravinsky Festival, 1937. Edward M. M. Warburg (left), Stravinsky (center), and Balanchine (right) are pictured playing cards on the back cover.
Stravinsky Festival
American Ballet Company Stravinsky Festival, in close association with the composer, including premiere of Jeu de Cartes, commissioned by Lincoln Kirstein and George Balanchine: Metropolitan Opera House..
Cover of Walker Evans: American photographs
Walker Evans: American Photographs
Arranges the first major exhibition of Walker Evans' photographs at the Museum of Modern Art and writes the text for Walker Evans: American Photographs.
Installation of Walker Evans: American Photographs © Walker Evans Archive, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Walker Evans MoMA Installation
Installation view of Walker Evans: American Photographs with workmen moving sculpture. The Museum of Modern Art, September 1938.
Departing for American Ballet Caravan’s South America Tour, New York, NY, ca. 1941.
Havana
Ballet Caravan tour to Havana.
Eric Hawkins, Eugene Loring, and Lew Christensen in a scene from Billy the Kid. Photographer unknown.
Billy the Kid
Ballet Caravan premiere of Billy the Kid, libretto by Lincoln Kirstein, choreography by Eugene Loring to music commissioned for the ballet from Aaron Copland: Chicago Civic Theater.
Cover of Ballet Alphabet
Ballet Alphabet
Publication of Ballet Alphabet: A Primer for Laymen, with drawings by Paul Cadmus
Cover of Films: A quarterly of discussion and analysis, November, 1939.
Films
Joins Jay Leyda, Mary Losey, Robert Stebbins, and Lee Strasberg in founding the journal Films.
ABT Program Cover
ABT / American Lyric Theatre
The American Ballet Company participates in the first season of the American Lyric Theatre, New York City.
Installation view of the exhibition "Preview: Dance Archives"
American Archives of the Dance
Presents his collection of more than five thousand books and documents on dance to the Museum of Modern Art to form the nucleus of an American archives of the dance; later transferred to the Dance Collection of the New York Public Library, now the Jerome Robbins Dance Division.
Cast from A Thousand Times Neigh at the Ford Playhouse -- Marie-Jeanne is in arabesque. Photographer unknown. Courtsey of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
A Thousand Times Neigh
At the suggestion of Walter Dorwin Teague produces A Thousand Times Neigh! for the Ford Motor Company at the New York World's Fair, performed by the dancers of Ballet Caravan for six months and thought to have been seen by a million persons.
With Fidelma Cadmus on Fire Island
Marriage
Marries Fidelma Cadmus.
Betsy Cushing Roosevelt Whitney and Lincoln Kirstein at the opening of the "Latin American Collection of the Museum of Modern Art," looking at a work by Rufino Tamayo. The Museum of Modern Art Archives, New York.
Museum of Modern Art Activity
Consultant to the Museum of Modern Art on Latin-American art; travels in South America to purchase painting and sculpture in 1942; writes the catalogue for the exhibition The Latin American Collection of the Museum of Modern Art in 1943.
Program Cover for American Ballet Caravan's performances at Teatro Municipal, Brazil, June 1941. Courtsey of the Museum of Performance + Design.
American Ballet Caravan & Latin America
American Ballet Caravan (the combined American Ballet Company and Ballet Caravan) tours Latin America under the aegis of the United States Office for Coordination of Commercial and Cultural Relations Between the American Republics, through the agency of Nelson A. Rockefeller, Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs. In Argentina meets Rosa María Oliver and Victoria Ocampo, principal forces in bringing international culture to South America.
Cover of first edition of Dance Index
Dance Index
Founds the magazine Dance Index with Baird Hastings and Paul Magriel; is one of its editors and a principal contributor through the final issue in 1948; engages Donald Windham as editor 1943–1945, and Marian Eames as managing editor 1946–1948.
Cover of For My Brother
For My Brother
Publication of the novel For My Brother, based on a Mexican sojourn.
Army
Joins the United States Army; while stationed at Fort Belvoir with the Corps of Engineers studies the history of American battle.
Cover of American Battle Paintings
American Battle Paintings
Publication of American Battle Painting: 1776–1918, catalogue of the exhibition shown at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, and the Museum of Modern Art.
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Normandy, August 1944.
Overseas Duty
Overseas duty in England, France, and Germany, including a period as chauffeur to General George S. Patton.
Stephen Kovalyak, George Stout and Thomas Carr Howe transporting Michelangelo's sculpture Madonna and child, July 9, 1945. Photographer Unknown. Archives of American Art.
Monuments Men
With Captain Robert K. Posey, Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives Officer, Third United States Army, discovers (in the Steinberg Salt Mine at Alt Aussee) and supervises the recovery of the massive collection of art looted by the Nazis, intended for Hitler's proposed Führer Museum in Linz; later decorated by the Government of the Netherlands for his service.
Lincoln Kirstein in Hüngen, Bavaria, 1945.
Discharge
Honorable discharge from the Army, Private First Class.
Cover of William Rimmer, 1816-1879
William Rimmer
Publication of William Rimmer, 1816-1879, catalogue of the exhibition arranged by Kirstein for the Whitney Museum and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.
Layouts from Ballet Society 1946-1947 Program.
Ballet Society
With George Balanchine forms Ballet Society, Inc., a subscription-supported association to further lyric theater in America. The first Ballet Society performance: Central High School of Needle Trades, New York City. American premiere of Ravel's The Spellbound Child with choreography by George Balanchine; premiere of The Four Temperaments, Balanchine's ballet to music commissioned by him and Kirstein from Paul Hindemith in 1940. Season includes performances of Gian Carlo Menotti's The Medium and The Telephone (commissioned by Ballet Society).
1947-1956
Cover of Pavel Tchelitchew Drawings.
Pavel Tchelitchew
Publication of Pavel Tchelitchew Drawings.
Elie Nadelman's Alderman estate, 1948. Photograph by W. Eugene Smith/The LIFE Picture Collection via Getty Images.
Alderbrook
Following the death of Elie Nadelman meets Mrs. Nadelman, and with Mrs. Kirstein moves to Alderbrook, the sculptor's Riverdale home, in order to continue efforts begun while at Harvard to encourage appreciation of the sculptor's work.
Ballet Society program at the Children's Center Theatre on February 18, 1947. Cover by Corrado Cagli. Courtesy of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
Ballet Society Spring Season
Ballet Society spring season includes ballets to music commissioned from Elliott Carter, Rudi Revil, Stanley Bate, and John Cage, choreographed by John Taras, Todd Bolender, William Dollar, and Merce Cunningham, with decors by Joan Junyer, Esteban Francés, and Isamu Noguchi. The fall/winter season is held in part at the City Center of Music and Drama, Inc.
Orpheus, 1948. Photo courtesy of The Noguchi Museum Archives. © INFGM / ARS
Orpheus
Premiere of Orpheus, Balanchine's ballet to music commissioned from Stravinsky by Ballet Society: City Center.
Program for the revival of Carousel at The New York City Center for Music and Drama, 1949. Courtsey of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
City Center
Morton Baum, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the City Center invites Ballet Society to become a resident company of the City Center as the New York City Ballet, with Kirstein as General Director and George Balanchine as Artistic Director.
Cover of The Sculpture of Elie Nadelman.
The Sculpture of Elie Nadelman
Arranges retrospective exhibition of Elie Nadelman's work at the Museum of Modern Art, the Boston Institute of Contemporary Art, and the Baltimore Museum of Art; writes the catalogue The Sculpture of Elie Nadelman.
Cover of The New Republic,, February 5, 1951.
The New Republic
Writes art criticism for The New Republic from 1949 through 1951.
Lincoln Kirstein and George Balanchine returning to New York City after company performances in England. Photograph by Fred Melton, 1950. Courtesy of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
NYCB Overseas Tour
First New York City Ballet overseas tour, to England.
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New York City, 1952, Photograph by Cecil Beaton
Gramercy Park
Purchases permanent home near Gramercy Park, New York City.
City Center Board
Becomes a member of the Board of Directors of the City Center in May; on October 1 is named Managing Director.
New York City Ballet Souvenier Program, Gran Teatro del Liceo, Barcelona, Spain, 1952.
European Tour
New York City Ballet European tour to Barcelona, The Hague, London, and Edinburgh.
Lincoln Kirstein with Alicia Markova, Alexandra Danilova, and Ben Sommers (president of Capezio, Co. INC.) after receiving the Capezio Award. Getty Images, Bettmann Collection.
Capezio Award
Receives the Capezio Award for distinguished service to American dance.
State Department
Named advisor to the State Department on American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) foreign tours.
Construction of Lincoln Center, ca. 1962. Photograph by John Rooney/Associated Press
Lincoln Center
Involved in the planning of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.
Exterior of The American Shakespeare Festival Theatre, ca. 1956. Stratford, Connecticut. Hartford Public Library.
Stratford
First season of the American Shakespeare Festival Theatre Academy at Stratford, Connecticut, of which Kirstein was a founder and officer, and for which he produced A Midsummer Night's Dream.
Lincoln Kirstein with the administrative staff of SAB: Eugenia Ouroussow and Natasha Molostwoff, 1953. Photograph by Frederick Melton. Courtesy of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
SAB Moves
The School of American Ballet moves to 2291 Broadway.
1957-1966
AGMA Award
Receives the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA) Award for his service and devotion to the cause of the American dancer.
Arthur Mitchell and Diana Adams in Agon 1957. Photographer unknown. Courtesy of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
Agon
Premiere of Agon, Balanchine's ballet to Stravinsky's music commissioned by Balanchine and Kirstein.
Photograph of Douglas Moore and Carlos Chavez at the permiere of Panfilo and Lauretta, 1957. Photographer Unknown. Columbia University Libraries Online Exhibition.
Rockefeller Foundation Commissions
With the Rockefeller Foundation commissions the opera Panfilo and Lauretta from Carlos Chavez and Chester Kallman.
New York City Ballet performance at Shinjuku Koma Theatre on March 17, 1958 in Tokyo, Japan. The Asahi Shumban via Getty Images.
Japan and Australia Tour
New York City Ballet tour to Japan and Australia.
Japan
Lives in Japan for the first of several periods.
Distinguished Service Award
Receives the Distinguished Service Award of the National Institute of Arts and Letters.
Ballerina Allegra Kent (L) and singer Lotte Lenya (R) performing in George Balanchine's ballet The Seven Deadly Sins. Photograph by Gordon Parks, 1958. Gordon Parks/The LIFE Picture Collection via Getty Images
Seven Deadly Sins
First performance, by the New York City Ballet, of the revival of the Weill/Brecht Seven Deadly Sins with Lotte Lenya, who appeared in Balanchine's original production for Les Ballets 1933; translation commissioned by Lincoln Kirstein from W.H. Auden and Chester Kallman
Ford Foundation
The Division of the Humanities and the Arts of the Ford Foundation, under the leadership of W. McNeil Lowry, Vice President of the Foundation, provides a grant to Ballet Society for a survey of the teaching of ballet in America; subsequent grants to the School of American Ballet make possible a reduced and more selective student body, with scholarship assistance allowing gifted dancers from throughout the country to attend the School.
Japanese bugaku dancers performing at New York City Ballet, 1959. Photographer unknown. Courtesy of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
Gagaku
With the support of Dag Hammarskjöld invites Gagaku, the musicians and dancers of the Japanese Imperial Household, to appear during the New York City Ballet season.
Cover of The Play of Daniel
The Play of Daniel
Produce The Play of Daniel with Noah Greenberg's Pro Musica Antiqua in the Romanesque Court of The Cloisters, New York City.
New York City, 1960. Photograph by Henri Cartier-Bresson (used with permission, copyright © Henri Cartier-Bresson/Magnum)
Photographed by Henri Cartier Bresson
Photographed by Cartier Bresson in the SAB studios.
Grand Kabuki American Tour Program, ca. 1960
Japanese Grand Kabuk
Arranges the American tour of the Japanese Grand Kabuki, and is Awarded the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Fourth Class, by the Japanese Government, for his outstanding contribution to the cultural exchange between the two nations.
The National Cultural Center Fact Sheet, List of Advisory Committee on the Arts Members. March 11, 1963. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.
Advisory Committee on the Arts
Appointed a member of the Advisory Committee on the Arts by President John F. Kennedy.
East Room, White House, Washington, D.C., 1961. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.
Shakespeare in the White House.
Produces a Shakespeare Evening in the East Room of the White House following a state dinner for President Ibraham Aboud of the Sudan.
World's Fair Poster>
Seattle World's Fair
Commissioned by the Seattle World's Fair to arrange a demonstration of traditional Japanese ritual sports; New York City Ballet performs at the Fair.
Tour poster featuring Melissa Hayden. Photograph via Carol Sumner, ca. 1962
First Soviet Union Tour
First New York City Ballet tour to the Soviet Union; series of visits with Sergei Eisenstein's widow, Pera Atasheva.
Ford Foundation Grants
First of continuing grants to the New York City Ballet and the School of American Ballet from the Division of the Humanities and the Arts of the Ford Foundation.
Citizen's Advisory Committee
Appointed a member of the Citizens Advisory Committee to the Office of Cultural Affairs of the City of New York by Mayor Robert F. Wagner.
Cover of Rhymes of a PFC
Rhymes of a PFC
Publication of Rhymes of a PFC, republished in an expanded edition as Rhymes and More Rhymes of a PFC in 1966.
Cover of Pavel Tchelitchew
Pavel Tchelitchew
Publication of Pavel Tchelitchew, catalogue of the exhibition shown at the Gallery of Modern Art, New York City.
Inside of the New York State Theater on opening night. Photograph by Bettmann, 1964. Getty Images/Bettmann Collection.
New York City Ballet at Lincoln Center
The New York City Ballet takes up permanent residence at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and opens the New York State Theater, designed by Philip Johnson working closely with George Balanchine and Kirstein. For the Grand Promenade Lincoln Kirstein arranges the installation of monumental figures carved from marble after small original sculptures by Elie Nadelman.
Montgomery, Alabama, 1965. Photograph by Harley Brate
Montgomery, Alabama
Takes part in the Alabama civil rights marches.
NYCB Tours
New York City Ballet tour to Europe, Israel, and England.
Violette Verdy poses with sign announcing the Saratoga Performing Arts Center, 1966. Photograph by Martha Swope © The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
Saratoga Performing Arts Center
First of continuing seasons at the newly founded Saratoga Performing Arts Center, Saratoga Springs, New York, which is designed in close consultation with the New York City Ballet.
1967-1976
AGMA Award
Receives the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA) Award for a second time for his service and devotion to the cause of the American dancer.
Metropolitan Museum
Kirstein is elected a benefactor to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
John Lithgow and Kathryn Walker (as Mr. and Mrs. Abraham Lincoln) in White House Happening at Loeb Drama Center, August, 1967. Photograph by Martha Swope © The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
White House Happening
Production of Kirstein's White House Happening (1967), a play about Abraham Lincoln, at the Loeb Drama Center, Harvard University.
Magic Carpet
Reading of Magic Carpet, a play based on Gurdjieffian teaching, at the Harvard Dramatic Club.
View of the Juilliard School. Photograph by Ezra Stoller, ca. 1970.
New Building
The School of American Ballet moves into specially designed quarters in the new building of the Juilliard School at Lincoln Center.
Kyoto, 1969, Photograph by Matusoki Nagare.
Kyoto
Kirstein in Kyoto.
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Dance Theatre of Harlem's New York Premiere at the Guggenheim, January 1971. Photograph by Suzanne Vlamis
Dance Theater of Harlem
Encourages and provides continuing support for the Dance Theatre of Harlem, which debuts in 1971, founded and directed by Arthur Mitchell, formerly a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet.
Cover of The Stravinsky Festival Program of The New York City Ballet.
Stravinsky Festival
The Stravinsky Festival of the New York City Ballet, New York State Theater. The thirty ballets in seven performances include twenty premieres by choreographers George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, John Clifford, John Taras, Richard Tanner, Todd Bolender, and Lorca Massine.
NYCB Soviet Union Program, 1972.
NYCB Tours
New York City Ballet tours to Munich for the Olympic Games and to the Soviet Union.
Cover of Lay This Laurel
Lay This Laurel
Publication of Lay This Laurel, with an essay by Kirstein and photographs by Richard Benson. The album depicts the Saint-Gaudens Memorial on Boston Common, which honors black and white men who together served the Union cause with Robert Gould Shaw and died with him on July 18, 1863. Kirstein writes about the history of the Regiment, the monument, and Augustus Saint-Gaudens; includes poems by Whitman, Emily Dickinson, and pre-Civil War black poets; a listing of Regiment members; and a selected bibliography.
Handel Medallion
Presented the Handel Medallion by New York City.
Cover of The New York City Ballet
Publication of The New York City Ballet
Publication of The New York City Ballet to celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the company, with photographs by George Platt Lynes and Marth Swope. Platt Lynes recorded the company and its predecessors from 1935 through 1955.
Cover of Elie Nadelman
Publication of Elie Nadelman
Publication of Elie Nadelman. Initiates the exhibition The Sculpture and Drawings of Elie Nadelman, shown at the Whitney and Hirshhorn Museums in 1975 and 1976.
Cover of Nijinsky Dancing
Nijinsky Dancing
Publication of Nijinsky Dancing.
Suzanne Farrell and Peter Martins in G Major, choreographed by Jerome Robbins, 1975. Photograph by Martha Swope © The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
Ravel Festival
The Ravel Festival of the New York City Ballet: New York State Theater. The opening was attended by Madame Valéry Giscard-d'Estaing, representing the Government of France.
National Book Award Nomination
Nominated for the National Institute of Arts and Letters National Book Award for Nijinsky Dancing
Union Jack, choreography by George Balanchine, 1976. Photograph by Martha Swope © The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
United States Bicentennial
The New York City Ballet produces Union Jack, choreographed by George Balanchine, as its contribution to the United States Bicentennial. Sir Peter Ramsbotham, Ambassador from the Court of St. James's, and the Earl of Harewood are guests at the opening.
French Invitation
The Government of France invites the New York City Ballet to perform in Paris in honor of the United States Bicentennial.
1977-1986
Cover of Union Jack
Union Jack
Publication of Union Jack.
Yale Drama School
Appointed, with Wynn Handman, Lee Breuer, and Keith Fowler, by Yale Drama School to teach advanced courses in directing and theater administration.
Cover of Horizon, May 1980.
Lincoln Kirstein's Vision
"Lincoln Kirstein's Vision: How a Balletomane Created the Finest Ballet School in the U. S." by Peter J. Rosenwald appears in Horizon (pages 38–43)..
Gold Medal of Merit for Dance
The National Society of Arts and Letters presents its first Gold Medal of Merit for Dance to George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein.
Ballet's Commander in Chief
"Ballet's Commander in Chief" by Christine Temin appears in Harvard Magazine (pages 50–56).
Prince Philip awarding Kirstein the Franklin Medal of the Royal Society of Arts. Photograph from The New York Times, December 16, 1981.
Benjamin Franklin Medal
Receives the Benjamin Franklin Medal of the Royal Society of Arts, for "forwarding the cause of Anglo-American understanding," presented by Prince Philip of England.
Sketch of David Mitchell's set design for Liebeslieder Walzer, 1984. Photo by Martha Swope © The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
Liebeslieder Walzer
New York City Ballet presents Balanchine's Liebeslieder Walzer with commissioned new decor by David Mitchell.
Kirstein receiving the National Medal of the Arts from President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan, April 23, 1985. Photograph by Fackelman. Courtesy of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
National Medal of Arts
One among twelve recipients of the new National Medal of Arts, presented by President Ronald Reagan for "contribution to American culture."
Municipal Art Society Award
Receives the Municipal Art Society's annual award for "contributions to quality of life in New York City."
ABT Convocation
Convokes, at the School of American Ballet, five generations of ballet teachers, company directors and dancers to discuss George Balanchine as a teacher.
"Diana" by Augustus Saint-Gaudens. Courtesy of the Met Museum.
"Diana"
1985 gift to The Metropolitan Museum of Art of a reduced gilded-bronze "Diana" by Augustus Saint-Gaudens appears in the exhibition Augustus Saint-Gaudens
"Tango" by Elie Nadelman. The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. © Estate of Elie Nedelman
Elie Nadelman Sculptures
Donates Elie Nadelman sculptures "Tango," "Chef d'Orchestre" and several others to the School of American Ballet. These gifts are subsequently auctioned at Christie's by the School of American Ballet to benefit the School's building project.
School of American Ballet Residence
Makes first announcement and appeal for support of the projected new School of American Ballet residence.
New Swan Lake
New York City Ballet premiere of commissioned new production by Alain Vaës of Balanchine's Swan Lake
"Woman After a Bath," ca. 1906. Unidentified artist. Gift to the Met from Lincoln Kirstein.
Impressions of a New Civilization
The Metropolitan Museum of Art mounts the exhibition Impressions of a New Civilization: The Lincoln Kirstein Collection of Japanese Prints (1860–1912).
1987-1996
Cover of Quarry: A Collection in Lieu of Memoirs
Quarry: A Collection in Lieu of Memoirs
Publication of Quarry: A Collection in Lieu of Memoirs
Cover of The Poems of Lincoln Kirstein
The Poems of Lincoln Kirstein
Birthday presentation edition of The Poems of Lincoln Kirstein by Atheneum. Followed by trade edition publication by the Eakins Press Foundation.
A birthday tribute to Clement Crisp
A birthday tribute to Clement Crisp appears in the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, journal About the House (pages 46–49).
Lincoln Center
The School of American Ballet becomes the eleventh constituent member of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.
Eightieth Birthday
Eightieth birthday is celebrated at the New York State Theater.
The Sleeping Beauty
Commissions a new production of The Sleeping Beauty for New York City Ballet choreographed by Peter Martins; designs for scenery by David Mitchell and costumes by Patricia Zipprodt are presented to the invited audience of friends.
"Lincoln Kirstein Turns Eight," by Susan Sontag. Vanity Fair, May 1987.
Susan Sontag
"Lincoln Kirstein Turns Eighty" by Susan Sontag appears in Vanity Fair (page 28).
Dance Hall of Fame in the National Museum of Dance in Saratoga Springs, New York.
Dance Hall of Fame
Inducted, with George Balanchine, among the thirteen initial honorees in the Dance Hall of Fame at the new National Museum of Dance in Saratoga Springs, New York.
Balanchine's La Sonnambula
New York City Ballet premiere of commissioned new production by Alain Vaës of Balanchine's La Sonnambula.
Portrait of a Culture Hero
"Portrait of a Culture Hero" by Julie Kavanagh appears in Harper's & Queen (pages 132, 134–135, 204, 224).
Impressions of a New Civilization
Impressions of a New Civilization: The Lincoln Kirstein Collection of Japanese Prints (1860–1912) tours the country under the auspices of The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service.
Cover of Memorial to a Marriage.
Memorial to a Marriage
Publication of Memorial to a Marriage.
Art Donations
Donates various paintings and drawings to the School of American Ballet. Subsequent auction by the school at Christie's benefits the School's building project.
Academy Awards
The film Glory, with screenplay by Kevin Jarre inspired by Lay This Laurel, wins Academy Awards for supporting actor, cinematography, and sound.
Retirement
Retires as General Director of the New York City Ballet and President of the School of American Ballet.
The Classic Ballet
The Classic Ballet reaches twenty-fourth continuous printing.
Puss in Boots at the School of American Ballet workshop performance, 1990. Photograph by Paul Kolnik.
Puss in Boots (The Master Cat)
The School of American Ballet workshop premiere of Puss in Boots (The Master Cat), commissioned by Kirstein, who also wrote the scenario and collaborated on production with choreographer Robert LaFosse, composer Larry Spivack, and designer Gary Lisz.
Augustus Saint-Gaudens Memorial Medal, designed by Robert W. White.
Augustus Saint-Gaudens Memorial Honor
Honored by the Trustees of the Augustus Saint-Gaudens Memorial with a gold-leaf palm frond "for contributions to the memory of Augustus Saint-Gaudens and to the appreciation and preservation of the artist's work."
Bust of Balanchine by George M. Kelly (left) and bust of Kirstein by Gaston Lachaise (right) in the School of American Ballet lobby, 2013. Courtesy of the School of American Ballet.
George M. Kelly
Commissions sculptor George M. Kelly to create a bust of George Balanchine to be placed in the new School of American Ballet lobby. It is to be paired with a bust of Kirstein by Gaston Lachaise.
Cover of By With to and From.
A Lincoln Kirstein Reader
Publication of By With To & From: A Lincoln Kirstein Reader.
The Samuel B. & David Rose Building, 2016. Photograph by Nicolas Janberg. Courtesy of Structurae
New Samuel B. and David Rose Building
School of American Ballet opens its studio-dormitory facilities in the new Samuel B. and David Rose building at Lincoln Center exactly fifty-seven years after the School's founding. This is the first time in its history that the School has owned its own home.
School of American Ballet Day
Speaks at the official opening of the new School of American Ballet facility. The date is proclaimed "School of American Ballet Day" by Mayor David N. Dinkins.
Lourdes Lopes as Caraboose in The Sleeping Beauty, 1991. Photograph by Martha Swope © The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
The Sleeping Beauty
New York City Ballet premiere of The Sleeping Beauty, co-produced and with scenario by Kirstein, staged by Peter Martins.
Balanchine as Teacher
"Balanchine as Teacher," a transcript of the October 1985 symposium, is published in Ballet Review (pages 61–97).
Cover of Puss in Boots.
Publication of Puss in Boots
Publication of Puss in Boots, illustrated by Alain Vaës.
Cover of Paul Cadmus.
Publication of Paul Cadmus
Publication of Paul Cadmus, in conjunction with the exhibition Paul Cadmus at Midtown Payson Galleries, New York
Balanchine Celebration
Announces an eight-week Balanchine Celebration by the New York City Ballet, during which seventy-three Balanchine ballets will be performed, to commence on Kirstein's eighty-sixth birthday, May 4, 1993.
Cover of Tchelitchev.
Tchelitchev
Publication of Tchelitchev.
Cover of Mosaic: Memoirs
Mosaic
Publication of Mosaic:Memoirs
January 5 - Death of Lincoln Kirstein
Posthumous
The Lincoln Kirstein Wing, designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro.
Lincoln Kirstein Centennial
The year of Lincoln Kirstein centennial celebrations is inaugurated with the dedication of the School of American Ballet’s new Lincoln Kirstein Wing, designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro, at the Samuel B. and David Rose Building on West 65th Street.
New York City Ballet Program for Kirstein 100: A Tribute, June 2007.
NYCB Season Dedication
New York City Ballet dedicates its spring season to Lincoln Kirstein.
Whitney Exhibition
Exhibition Lincoln Kirstein: To See Deeply, focusing on Walker Evans, Elie Nadelman, and Pavel Tchelitchew, at the Whitney Museum of American Art.
Prelude to the Dance: Lincoln Kirstein at Harvard
Lecture "Prelude to the Dance: Lincoln Kirstein at Harvard," by Eugene R. Gaddis (Archivist and Curator of the Austin House, Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, Connecticut), at the Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Harvard University.
Cover of The Worlds of Lincoln Kirstein
The Worlds of Lincoln Kirstein
Publication of The Worlds of Lincoln Kirstein (Knopf), by Martin Duberman.
Cover of Lincoln Kirstein: A Bibliography of Published Writings, 1922–1996
Bibliography of Published Writings
Publication of Lincoln Kirstein: A Bibliography of Published Writings, 1922–1996, on Kirstein’s centennial birthday.
Dedication
Dedication of the School of American Ballet’s annual workshop performances to Kirstein.
Balanchine’s Serenade
Performance by students of SAB and members of NYCB, of Balanchine’s Serenade, in tribute to Kirstein, at the New York State Theater.
Metropolitan Museum of Art Exhibition
Exhibition A Tribute to Lincoln Kirstein (1907–1996)" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Lincoln Kirstein Centennial Reading
Lecture/symposium "Lincoln Kirstein Centennial Reading," organized by Poetry Society of America, Eakins Press Foundation, and The Center for the Humanities, at The Graduate Center, City University of New York
A Life in Art
Lecture/symposium "Lincoln Kirstein: A Life in Art," at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Lincoln Kirstein: Alchemist
Exhibition Lincoln Kirstein: Alchemist, focusing on the five dance companies he founded: the American Ballet, Ballet Caravan, American Ballet Caravan, Ballet Society, and the New York City Ballet, at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
Cover of Remembering Lincoln
Remembering Lincoln
Publication of Remembering Lincoln (Ballet Society, Inc.), edited by Nancy Reynolds.
Cover of Lincoln Kirstein: Program Notes
Publication of Program Notes
Publication of Lincoln Kirstein: Program Notes (Eakins Press Foundation and Alliance for the Arts), edited by Randall Bourscheidt.
Bringing Balanchine to America
Lecture "Bringing Balanchine to America: Chick Austin and 'the Hartford Catastrophe,'" by Eugene R. Gaddis, at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
Installation view of exhibit Nick Mauss: Transmissions Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Nick Mauss: Transmissions
Nick Mauss: Transmissions exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art examines the relationship between art and ballet from the 1930s to the 1950s.
Cover of Balanchine and Kirstein's American Enterprise
Balanchine and Kirstein’s American Enterprise
Balanchine and Kirstein’s American Enterprise by James Steichen is published by Oxford University Press.
Installation view of the exhibition The Young and Evil
The Young and Evil
Exhibition The Young and Evil curated by Jarrett Earnest at the David Zwirner Gallery, showcasing work by central figures in Kirstein’s artistic circle such as George Platt Lynes, Fidelma Cadmus Kirstein, Pavel Tchelitchew, and Paul Cadmus.
Installation view of archival footage of The Four Temperaments and Tchelitchew’s paintings. Photograph by Robert Gerhardt
Lincoln Kirstein’s Modern
Exhibition Lincoln Kirstein’s Modern at the Museum of Modern Art, focusing on Kirstein’s role in MoMA’s development and his contributions to art, literature, film, and dance. Accompanied by the film series "Lincoln Kirstein and Film Culture."
