Tanaquil Le Clercq Videos

Glimpse into a world where the studio is the stage, where practice becomes performance and viewer acts as mirror: the world of Jerome Robbins' 1953 masterwork, Afternoon of a Faun.

Of all the great ballerinas, Tanaquil Le Clercq (1929-2000), known as 'Tanny,' was surely among the most transcendent. With a body unlike any before hers, she mesmerized viewers and choreographers alike as principal dancer with the New York City Ballet, and became a muse to both her husband George Balanchine and friend Jerome Robbins. Then, at age 27 and the height of her fame, Le Clercq was stricken with polio and paralyzed; she never danced again. Emmy- and Peabody-winning filmmaker Nancy Buirski (The Loving Story) brings Tanny's poignant story to the screen for the first time inAmerican Masters -- Tanaquil Le Clercq: Afternoon of a Faun, premiering nationally Friday, June 20, 10-11:30 p.m. on PBS (check local listings, New York metro area at 9 p.m. on THIRTEEN).

Emmy-winning filmmaker Nancy Buirski spotlights Le Clercq's ballet career, struggle with polio, and influence on George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins and dance.