Jerome Robbins - 6abc Loves the Arts

Jerome Robbins is one of America's most celebrated choreographers, best known for his work on Westside Story and The King and I. Next month, the Pennsylvania Ballet is paying tribute to the genius of the Academy and Tony Award winning choreographer.

"You can tell what he was thinking by the way he choreographed. Every step has a meaning," and the Pennsylvania Ballet's artistic director, Angel Corella, says Robbins keen eye for theatrics helped define his otherwise classical style and approach to ballet and says his focus on character development distinguished him from many other choreographers throughout the 20th century.

"I love and admire and I think it's one of the best choreographers of all time...he used the dancers to tell the story and sometimes you even feel that you're watching a play almost more than your actually seeing dance so it's a great theatrical piece."

The Ballet will feature three works by Robbins, the most notable of which is Fancy Free, which was made into the Broadway musical On the Town and later developed into a movie starring Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly.

"It's a whole movie told in like 40 minutes or less than that," says Corella, "it has a lot of intensity. It has a lot of love and passion and fun, but at the same time, it's a very light and easy-watching program."

And with a program that offers so much variety, Corella, says the "All Robbins" night has a little something for everyone.

"He gave a lot of importance to creating characters for the dancers to become actors not to be dancers," says Corella, "its something that when you sit in the audience from beginning to end your feeling like you're in a movie. It's a program for the whole family. I'll invite everyone to come and see it."

A Tribute to Jerome Robbins runs May 7th-10th at the Academy of Music. For tickets go to www.TheArtsinPhilly.org.