[1] Students of the School of American Ballet gave the first performance on Sunday, 10 June 1934 on the Felix M. Warburg estate in White Plains, N.Y., where Mozartiana had been danced the previous day.

It was then presented by the Producing Company of the School of American Ballet on 6 December at the Avery Memorial Theatre of the Wadsworth Atheneum with sets by the painter William Littlefield.

Thus, the ballet acted as an important teaching tool that students of all advanced levels could potentially participate in and work up to as a graduation exercise.

Choreographed to a sweeping Tchaikovsky score and with nods to traditional ballets such as Giselle and Swan Lake, Balanchine also created an atmosphere of yearning and romanticism, aided by the soft blue tutus of the women and dimmed lighting.

While their early performances were not highly successful, many interpreted this “lack of enthusiasm as an indication of the company’s immaturity,” [1] and ballet's general premature introduction to the United States.