Yvonne Chouteau
Shawnee dancer Yvonne Chouteau was one of the “Five Moons”, Native American ballerinas from Oklahoma who gained international fame in the 20th century.
Category Archives: Dance > Ballet
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Marie Taglioni
Italian dancer who performed across Europe in the 1800s.
Fanny Elssler
Austrian dancer who rose to international fame.
Jean Ballantyne
In 1953 when she was invited to examine for the Royal Academy of Dancing. For the next 20 years she travelled widely throughout New Zealand and in England, Fiji, Malaya, Hong Kong and Singapore, examining thousands of students annually and conducting courses for teachers.
Dorothy Daniels
One of New Zealand’s leading teachers of ballet.
Peggy van Praagh
In 1962, she was invited to become the first artistic director of the Australian Ballet. She was to hold the position until retirement in 1974, returning for a year in 1978.
Kira Abricossova Bousloff
Bousloff is regarded as a pioneer of Australian ballet for her establishment and direction of the Perth-based West Australian Ballet in 1952; the company held its premiere performance in July 1953. Her vision for the company was to see it perform ballet with themes and stories inspired by Australian legends, with sets designed by local artists and music composed by Australians.
Maria Tallchief
At the age of 17, Maria Tallchief moved to New York City to pursue her dreams of becoming a dancer. She went from dance company to dance company looking for work. Many of the companies discriminated against her because of her Native American ancestry. Rejection did not stop Tallchief; she continued working towards her goal and eventually became one of America’s most popular ballerinas.
Kitty Phetla
Kitty Phetla is a South African ballet dancer and choreographer who began dancing in primary school. Her future mentor Martin Schönberg saw her talent at age 9 and coached her until she was 25, training her in ballet, Spanish dancing, contemporary dance, and Afro-fusion. She joined Schönberg’s Ballet Theatre Afrikan, dancing with the company until 2002 when she left to join the Joburg Ballet, where she became a senior soloist and choreographer. She toured Russia in 2012 with Anna Pavlova’s famous solo The Dying Swan, becoming the first ballerina of African descent to perform the role in Russia. Traditionally performed in a pink tutu and tights, Phetla made the piece her own performing in a black tutu and stockings. She presented her iconic performance of this solo to Nelson Mandela and the Dutch Royal Family in Amsterdam. Phetla choreographed a full-length ballet to the music of Carmina Burana, which she presented in 2016 in China, with dancers from Joburg Ballet and the Liaoning Ballet of China, for an audience of dignitaries tht included China’s president. She also choreographed The After Effect, exploring schizophrenia, for South Africa’s Dance Umbrella festival.
She has also been a radio presenter, for five years on Alex FM, followed by six years of hosting her own show on Radio 2000.
Marjorie Tallchief
Marjorie Tallchief was a ballerina from the Native American Osage Nation, and was the first Native American to be “première danseuse étoile” of the Paris Opera Ballet and performed with the Grand Ballet du Marquis de Cuevas.