San Francisco Ballet group of his students, he founded the Utah Civic Ballet (now known as Ballet West) in 1963; the company remained under Christensen's directorship until 1978. Under Balanchine's tutelage at American Ballet, Lew Christensen became the first American-born "danseur noble". The United States Army drafted Christensen to fight in World War II. After the war ended, he joined Balanchine's and Lincoln Kirstein's Ballet Society (soon to become New York City Ballet), eventually becoming ballet master; he served in the role from 1946 until 1950. In 1951, he joined his brother Willam as co-director of San Francisco Ballet. When Willam moved to
Alonzo King LINES Ballet Alonzo King LINES Ballet The Alonzo King LINES Ballet (AKLB) is an American contemporary ballet company based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The ballet company, founded by choreographer Alonzo King, premiered at San Francisco State University's McKenna Theatre in 1982. LINES Ballet performs its home season at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco while also maintaining an international touring schedule that includes featured performances at venues such as Venice Biennale in Venice, Théâtre National de Chaillot in Paris, and The Kwai Tsing Theatre in Hong Kong. LINES Ballet, which celebrated its 35th Anniversary season in