Neoclassical ballet is the style of 20th century classical ballet exemplified by the works of George Balanchine. Opening up ballet to modernist tendencies, neoclassical ballet was first developed in the 1920s by Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes. It draws on the advanced techniques of academic ballet, exploring its content and respecting its codes, but extends its boundaries with new concepts and innovations. Today, such choreographers as William Forsythe, Jiří Kylián and Jean-Christophe Maillot are creating neoclassical works of remarkable beauty and virtuosity. A living art, neoclassical ballet is rooted in modern reality.
