Elise Reiman

[10][11][12] In 1930, she spent six months in Europe and performed as a guest artist, including at a garden party at Windsor Castle before the King and Queen.

[13] She created a role in the first ballet Balanchine choreographed in the United States, Serenade, followed by Reminiscence, Transcendance and Alma Mater (all 1935), the latter performed on Broadway.

[15] After Balanchine moved to the West Coast in 1938, Reiman remained in New York, and performed in Broadway shows throughout the early 1940s, including Liberty Jones (1941), The Lady Comes Across and Rosalinda (both 1942).

On November 20, the company's first performance, Reiman originated roles in Balanchine's The Four Temperaments, in which she danced in the second theme opposite Lew Christensen, and The Spellbound Child.

[15] Reiman left the School of American Ballet in 1953, but returned in 1964, after her husband's sudden death and at Balanchine's invitation.

[15] Fellow Balanchine ballerina Maria Tallchief called Reiman "the bridge between generations, an important connection... She understood his passion for the classical principles he learned at the Imperial Ballet School in St. Petersburg and brought to this country.