Katie McCona

Raised in an upstate New York blue-collar family, Fred Herko showed much promise as a concert pianist, going on to attend Julliard. But at age 20 after seeing a performance of Giselle, he announced his intention to give up the piano and become a ballet dancer. The resulting severe beating by his father for pursuing a career for gay men, only inspired Herko to follow the type of life he dreamed for himself after being awarded a four-year scholarship to attend the American Ballet Theater School. He moved to Greenwich Village and never looked back during his too short yet wildly successful career.

Curator, writer and translator Gerard Forde will lead a Q&A discussion following the Thursday, Sept. 28 performance of Freddy at the Caminito Theatre on the campus of Los Angeles City College.

A naive young woman falls under the spell of Fred Herko, a brilliant ballet dancer of extraordinary charisma and talent and a fiery denizen of Andy Warhol's Factory.

A naive young woman falls under the spell of Fred Herko, a brilliant ballet dancer of extraordinary charisma and talent and a fiery denizen of Andy Warhol's Factory.