French-trained Violette Verdy left the New York City Ballet under George Balanchine.
Although her French training and her petite physique set her apart from most female dancers in the company, she seemed to have an instinctive understanding of Balanchine's choreographic aesthetic; her quip that she feared sticking out "like a French poodle among a troupe of borzois" was widely circulated, but any personal anxiety was quickly dispelled by her well-received performances. From 1958 to 1977 she was a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet where she performed in the world premieres of several works created specifically for her by choreographers George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins. 
