Remembering Karin von Aroldingen, Balanchine Muse and Legacy Keeper
“My whole mission in life is to keep Balanchine’s work alive,” says former New York City Ballet dancer Karin von Aroldingen in Frances Mason’s I Remember Balanchine, a collection of interviews by George Balanchine’s friends and colleagues. Her words feel especially potent now—and never more true. On Friday, January 5, news came to light that the German-born dancer, teacher, NYCB ballet master and longtime stager for the Balanchine Trust had died at age 76.
Born in East Germany in 1941, von Aroldingen joined Frankfurt Ballet as a first soloist before George Balanchine invited her to join NYCB in 1962. Trained in the Russian method, she had to adjust her technique to fit NYCB’s fast, streamlined style. “It took me years to unwind myself, to be good,” she says in Mason’s book. She eventually rose to principal dancer in 1972. Her dancing was strong, assertive and passionate. During her 22-year career at NYCB, Balanchine created 20 roles for her, including Kammermusik No. 2, Union Jack, Vienna Waltzes, Who Cares?, Robert Schumann’s Davidsbündlertanze and her most well-known, Stravinsky Violin Concerto. (Who hasn’t marveled at her elastic backbends in the 1972 “Dance in America” broadcast above?)
