Rouben Ter-Arutunian (July 24, 1920 – October 17, 1992) was a costume and scenic designer for dance, opera, theater and television.[1]
The work of Broadway's gay and lesbian artistic community went on display in
2007 when the Leslie/Lohman Gay Art Foundation Gallery presents "StageStruck:
The Magic of Theatre Design." The exhibit was conceived to highlight the
achievements of gay and lesbian designers who work in conjunction with fellow
gay and lesbian playwrights, directors, choreographers and composers. Original
sketches, props, set pieces and models — some from private collections —
represent the work of over 60 designers, including Rouben Ter-Arutunian.
Born in Tiflis (now Tbilisi), Georgia, he attended the Reimann Art School (Berlin) from 1939 to 1941, studied film music at the Hochschule fur Musik (Berlin) and took courses at the Friedrich-Wilhelm University (Berlin), 1941–43, and at the University of Vienna, 1943-44.
He first designed costumes for dancers of the Berlin Staatsoper in 1940, going on to design for the Dresden Opera and the Vienna State Opera. He moved to New York in 1951, which started his twenty-five year association with
George Balanchine and New York City Ballet.[2] In 1964 he designed the sets for the New York City Ballet production of The Nutcracker.[3] He worked with the New York City Opera company, Hamburg State Opera, La Scala in Milan, the Opera-Comique in Paris and the Spoleto Festival in Italy.
He designed either costumes or sets, sometimes both, for 24 Broadway productions. His first production on Broadway was Measure for Measure in 1957, and his last was Goodbye Fidel in 1980.
He won the 1959 Tony Award for Best Costume Design for the musical Redhead, and was nominated for the Tony Award three times for Scenic Design and one other Tony for Costume Design.
The Rouben Ter-Arutunian Design Portfolios and the Rouben Ter-Arutunian Papers are held by the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.[4]
My published books:
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