Glen Tetley Dies at 80
The Latest News || Tuesday, 30 January, 2007
Glen Tetley one of the first dance makers to bring modern work to traditional ballet companies in the 70's and 80's has died in Palm Beach, Florida this past Friday from melanoma (a form of skin cancer).
Following training in medicine and a couple of years in the US Navy, Mr Tetley began his career in dance in the late 1940's working and training with many of the pioneers of modern dance, including Martha Graham, as well as attending the American School of Ballet (the official school of the New York City Ballet).
Throughout the late 40's and 50's he worked with many of the dance makers that most of today's students study in dance history. As well as Graham he also performed with American Ballet Theatre, New York Opera, John Butler, Joffrey Ballet and Hanya Holm.
In 1967 he came to the UK and worked with Ballet Rambert (now Rambert Dance Company) and was instrumental in beginning the company's transition to a modern dance company which included a re-staging of his signature work 'Pierrot lunaire' with Christopher Bruce in the lead role.
The Royal Ballet commissioned him to create a work in 1970 ('Field Figures') but he was looked upon with slight suspicion at the time because of his modern choreographic principles.
During the next 30 years of his career he created numerous works on ballet and modern companies across the world including Nederlands Dans Theatre, Stuttgart Ballet, Australian Dance Theatre and American Ballet Theatre.
He created his last work in 1999, 'Lux in Tenebris', for Houston Ballet.
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