William Dollar
William Dollar was an influential American ballet dancer, choreographer, and ballet master who played a crucial role in establishing classical ballet training and performance in Iran. His extensive experience with leading ballet figures and companies shaped his approach to dance education and creation.
Early Training and Prominent Collaborations
Dollar studied with George Balanchine, Michel Fokine, and Pierre Vladimirov, some of the most prominent figures in ballet history. He was a leading dancer with the American Ballet, Ballet Caravan, and the American Ballet Caravan companies, which preceded and led to the establishment of the New York City Ballet in 1948. His creations with those companies included roles in Balanchine’s versions of Le Baiser de la Fée, The Card Party, and Transcendence, which Balanchine choreographed especially for him. His first ballet, Classic Ballet, was choreographed jointly with Balanchine. He choreographed many other ballets, of which his best known is The Duel, originally staged in 1949 as Le Combat for Roland Petit’s Ballets de Paris. He worked with ballet companies in Brazil, Japan, and Monte Carlo.
Contribution to Iranian Ballet Development
Upon his arrival in Iran on the invitation of the Ministry of Culture and Arts, Dollar helped to establish the National Ballet Academy of Iran and the Iranian National Ballet. He was the first ballet master and principal choreographer of the company, shouldering the main artistic responsibility and establishing a methodical training system in classical ballet for both the company and the academy. He is mentioned as one of the first American classical male dancers belonging to the top-ranking performers in terpsichorean art.