The nimble quickness of Tarantella provides a virtuosic showcase. The profusion of steps and the quick changes of direction this brief but explosive pas de deux requires typify the ways in which Balanchine expanded the traditional vocabulary of classical dance.
Tarantella ballet choreographed by New York City Ballet co-founder and balletmaster George Balanchine to Louis Moreau Gottschalk's Grande Tarantelle, Op. 67, reconstructed and orchestrated for piano and orchestra by Hershy Kay. The premiere took place January 7, 1964, at the City Center of Music and Drama, New York.