Kirkland, Gelsey (1952–)

American ballet dancer. Born Dec 29, 1952, in Bethlehem, PA; dau. of Jack Kirkland (playwright) and Nancy (Hoadley) Kirkland (actress); sister of Johnna Kirkland, dancer; attended Professional Children's School, NY; studied ballet at New York City Ballet's School of American Ballet; m. Greg Lawrence (writer), on May 13, 1985.

Known for her legendary partnership with Mikhail Baryshnikov, had a meteoric rise as a soloist; joined New York City Ballet's corps de ballet, becoming its youngest member at 15; danced 1st solo role as Butterfly in A Midsummer Night's Dream and went on to perform leads in Clifford's Reveries and Balanchine's Monumentum Pro Gesualdo (1969); won accolades for appearance as Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker (1970); promoted to rank of soloist and selected by Balanchine to dance title role in Firebird (1970); became darling of the media, dancing the lead in Robbins' The Goldberg Variations, Clifford's Tchaikovsky Suite, and Tanner's Concerto for Two Pianos (1970–71); further expanded repertory to include Brahms Schoenbert Quartet, Symphony in C, Theme and Variations and Harlequinade; delighted audiences in d'Amboise's Irish Fantasy; promoted to principal dancer (1972), took on additional roles, but began to rebel against Balanchine's demands; split with New York City Ballet to partner Baryshnikov at American Ballet Theatre, performing the grand pas de deux from Don Quixote (1974); won particular acclaim as Lise in La Fille Mal Gardée (1974); made spectacular debut in La Sylphide, partnered with Ivan Nagy (1975); reached zenith in Giselle, partnered with Baryshnikov (1975); appeared in 2 works by Tudor: Shadowplay and The Leaves Are Fading (1975); dealt with anorexia and bulimia throughout career and resigned from American Ballet Theatre to confront an addiction to cocaine (1984); danced Romeo and Juliet with Royal Ballet (1986).

See also autobiography Dancing On My Grave (Doubleday, 1986); and Women in World History.