Sara Leland

Sally Harrington (August 2, 1941 – November 28, 2020), known professionally as Sara Leland, was an American ballet dancer and répétiteur. She started her career with the Joffrey Ballet in 1959, and was recruited to join the New York City Ballet by George Balanchine in 1960. She was promoted to principal dancer in 1972, and created roles for both Balanchine and Jerome Robbins.

Sara Leland
Born
Sally Harrington

(1941-08-02)August 2, 1941
Melrose, Massachusetts, U.S.
DiedNovember 28, 2020(2020-11-28) (aged 79)
Westwood, New Jersey, U.S.
Occupation
OrganizationNew York City Ballet
Spouse(s)
Arthur Kevorkian
​
​
(m. 1975; div. 1993)​
Parent(s)

In the mid 1970s, she started staging Balanchine's and Robbins' works in both the U.S. and abroad. In 1981, the New York City Ballet appointed her assistant ballet master, and she retired from performing in 1983, but continued to stage and coach ballets. As a répétiteur, she had worked on more than 30 ballets.

Early life

Leland was born Sally Harrington in Melrose, Massachusetts on August 2, 1941. Her father, Leland "Hago" Harrington, was an ice hockey player who played for the Boston Bruins.[1] Sally started ballet at age five,[2] with her sister who needed ballet as physical therapy, though Leland's talent was noticed and she started training with E. Virginia Williams, who founded New England Civic Ballet (now Boston Ballet), while Leland's mother both worked at the company front desk and made costumes,[1][2] and would become the executive director of Boston Ballet.[3]

Career

In 1959, Robert Joffrey invited Leland to join his company, the Joffrey Ballet, after seeing her dance with the New England Civic Ballet.[1] The following year, while Leland was in Boston, she took a class with Williams at the New England Civic Ballet. George Balanchine, an artistic advisor of the company, spotted her and recruited her to join the New York City Ballet. The same year, she was cast as a lead role in Les Biches, Francisco Moncion's new ballet.[1]

Leland was made soloist in 1963, and was chosen to dance lead roles in works by Balanchine, Jerome Robbins and Frederick Ashton.[1] Whilst a soloist, her role creations include Balanchine's "Emeralds" from Jewels,[1] and Robbins' Dances at a Gathering[4] and The Goldberg Variations.[5] For the latter two, Leland also assisted Robbins since she could learn the choreography quickly.[1]

In 1972, she became a principal dancer. The promotion came shortly before the company's Stravinsky Festival, in which she danced Balanchine's Lost Sonata and Symphony in Three Movements.[1] She went on to create roles in Balanchine's Vienna Waltzes and Union Jack.[6][7] Other ballets she was known for include Balanchine's Serenade,[8] Brahms–Schoenberg Quartet,[9] Agon, La Valse, Davidsbündlertänze, The Nutcracker and Don Quixote. She retired from performing in 1983.[1]

In the mid-1970s, Leland started staging Balanchine and Robbins' works in both the U.S. and abroad, and at Balanchine's request, she also coached principal female roles.[1] She was appointed assistant balletmaster with the New York City Ballet in 1981, whilst an active dancer, and continued to stage and coach ballets after she stopped dancing.[1] In a 1982 interview, she stated she watched Balanchine rehearse closely and as often as possible, in order to learn the ballets so accurately that she would "never forget them and can stage them in the future exactly as he intended".[2] Due to her ability to remember choreography, she was able to teach more than 30 ballets.[2]

Personal life

In 1975, Leland married Arthur Kevorkian, a businessman. The marriage ended in divorce in 1993.[1][2] In her later life, she lived in New City, New York.[1]

Death

On November 28, 2020, Leland died from congestive heart failure in Westwood, New Jersey. She was 79.[1]

References
  1. Sulcas, Roslyn (December 9, 2020). "Sara Leland, Ballerina of Passion and Abandon, Dies at 79". New York Times.
  2. Hoffman, Marilyn (February 24, 1982). "Sara Leland; Focusing her talents to impart Balanchine's best". Christian Science Monitor.
  3. "Sara Leland, Boston-trained dancer for the New York City Ballet, dies at 79". The Boston Globe. December 14, 2020.
  4. Barnes, Clive (May 23, 1969). "Ballet: Robbins 'Dances at Gathering'; 1st Performance Given by the City Company". New York Times.
  5. Barnes, Clive (May 29, 1971). "Dance: Robbins's Genius". New York Times.
  6. Kisselgoff, Anna (June 24, 1977). "Dance: City Ballet in Balanchine Premiere". New York Times.
  7. Kisselgoff, Anna (May 13, 1976). "Ballet's Bicentennial Bow to Britain". New York Times.
  8. Barnes, Cline (January 20, 1973). "The Dance: A Balanced Evening With 'Serenade'". New York Times.
  9. Kisselgoff, Anna (May 14, 1973). "'Intermezzo' with Leland". New York Times.
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