Mitchell and Adams in Agon
Breaking Barriers
Arthur Mitchell, an African American dancer, was brought to the School of American Ballet by Lincoln Kirstein and went on to become one of New York City Ballet's principal dancers. He said: "The myth was that because you were black that you could not do classical dance. I proved that to be wrong."
He is depicted here with principal dancer Diana Adams, in the rehearsal of the Agon pas de deux that broke race barriers onstage and advanced the state of ballet through sheer ground-breaking choreography. Agon was first performed in 1957 with music composed by Igor Stravinsky and choreography by George Balanchine.
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