John Clifford, born June 12, is the founder/artistic director of the original Los Angeles Ballet (1974–85), and the chamber-sized touring ensemble, Ballet of Los Angeles (1988–91) and the creator of “CASABLANCA, THE DANCE” produced by Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures, Inc. (which premiered in Beijing, China, at the historic "Great Hall of the People" in 2005) and his Los Angeles Dance Theater. Before that time, Clifford was a principal dancer and choreographer with George Balanchine’s New York City Ballet (1966–74), and guest artist from 1974–80, and was widely considered to be Balanchine’s protégé (Saturday Review). He choreographed his first (of eight) ballets for the NYC Ballet under Balanchine at age 20, thus making him the second-youngest choreographer in history ever to be attached to a major company. The first was Balanchine himself, who was 20 yrs-old when he choreographed his first ballet for Serge Diaghilev's "Ballets Russes." During his time with Balanchine, in his early 20s, he also was a guest choreographer with companies ranging from the San Francisco Ballet, to the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, to the Deutsche Oper Ballet in Berlin. Clifford's works were also featured in many TV shows and movies, such as "Flashdance," "The Man Who Loved Women," and TV series such as "Dynasty," "Glitter," and other shows produced by Blake Edwards and Aaron Spelling.
Also known as
Choreographer
