Early Life and Training
Christensen was born in Brigham City, Utah, to a family with roots in dance and music. His grandfather, Lars Christensen, who emigrated from Denmark, taught folk and social dances. Christensen was raised a Mormon, and this upbringing informed his latter career with of a sense of focusing on propriety.
Christensen began studying dance with his uncles and music with his father when he was ten. He was taught early ballet technique by Stefano Mascagno, an Italian teacher. His brother Willam started Lew and their third dancing brother, Harold, in vaudeville. In addition to small vaudeville shows, the three brothers landed jobs in the Broadway musical The Great Waltz, during which time Christensen became a student at Balanchine's new School of American Ballet. In 1935, he joined the Metropolitan Opera's American Ballet Ensemble with Harold.
Read more about this topic: Lew Christensen
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