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"The County Ory" Returns to NYC (1959); Dance Premieres Works by Limon, Uthoff and Sokolow (1969); Hindemith Rarity Recital (1976)

The following events in Juilliard’s history occurred in March:

Gloria Berliner (center, left) and Shirley Verrett-Carter (center, right) in a scene from the second act of Rossini's The Count Ory, 1959.

(Photo by Impact Photo Inc.)

The Count Ory flyer, featuring a set design by Saul Steinberg.

(Photo by Saul Steinberg)

Limón's La Piñata, 1969

(Photo by Milton Oleaga)

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1959: March 13-15, the Juilliard Opera Theater presented Gioacchino Rossini’s The Count Ory in an English adaptation by Robert A. Simon commissioned by Juilliard. Among the cast members were Shirley Verrett-Carter, Perryne Anker, Harold Johnson, Marnell Higley, Estelle Tyner, Gloria Berliner, and guest artists Paul Ukena, Ara Berberian, Nico Castel, and Judith Raskin. The production featured a visual overture and sets designed by Saul Steinberg, music direction by Frederic Waldman, and production and stage direction by Frederic Cohen. Prior to the Juilliard performance, The Count Ory had not been staged in New York since 1831. (It was premiered in Paris in 1828.)

1969: March 20-22, the Juilliard Dance Ensemble presented a program of three world premieres: José Limón’s La Piñata, commissioned by Juilliard and set to music by Burrill Phillips; Michael Uthoff’s The Pleasures of Merely Circulating; and Anna Sokolow’s Echoes. The program also included the Pas de Trois from Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov’s Swan Lake, directed by Antony Tudor. Dennis Russell Davies led the Juilliard Repertory Orchestra with harp soloists Elizabeth Kane and soprano Judith Hubbell.

1976: March 23, alumna and former faculty member Jane Carlson (1918-98) gave a recital at Juilliard that featured a rare New York performance of Paul Hindemith’s complete Ludus Tonalis and concluded with Samuel Barber’s Piano Sonata. Carlson was well-known as a foremost interpreter of Hindemith’s music, having recorded his Ludus Tonalis and given numerous performances of the work to wide acclaim. In 1945 she was selected to play Theme With Four Variations (The Four Temperaments) under the composer’s direction at Juilliard’s three-day festival in celebration of his 50th birthday, and then repeated the work with the Chicago Symphony at Hindemith’s request.

 

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