Noralma Vera Arrata (born 28 August 1936) is a former

Ecuadorian Ecuadorians ( es, ecuatorianos) are people identified with the South American country of Ecuador. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Ecuadorians, several (or all) of these connections exist and are colle ...

prima ballerina A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on ye ...

and choreographer. Vera Arrata was born in

Guayaquil , motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America , pushpin_re ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...

where she grew up as the only daughter among three sons of the distinguished

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

and former

Culture minister A culture minister or a heritage minister is a common cabinet position in governments. The culture minister is typically responsible for cultural policy, which often includes arts policy (direct and indirect support to artists and arts organizat ...

Alfredo Vera Vera and his wife, Baltita Arrata Macias. She comes from a prominent

intellectual An intellectual is a person who engages in critical thinking, research, and reflection about the reality of society, and who proposes solutions for the normative problems of society. Coming from the world of culture, either as a creator or a ...

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

in the country. Her brother,

Alfredo Vera Arrata Alfredo Vera Arrata (Guayaquil, 1935) was the Minister of Interior of Ecuador from January 2011 to June 2011. Born to the politician and lawyer Alfredo Vera Vera and his wife, Baltita Arrata Macías, Alfredo Vera Arrata was born in Guayaquil as ...

, is a former Education minister and Minister of Interior of

. Her uncle was the writer

Pedro Jorge Vera Pedro Jorge Vera (1914 in Guayaquil – 1999) was an Ecuadorian writer and Communist Party of Ecuador politician. He contributed to several newspapers and magazines of controversial character " La Calle", with the writer Alejandro Carrión, ...

. Noralma Vera married 1959 the painter

Patricio Cueva Jaramillo Patricio Cueva Jaramillo (28 December 1928 – 19 May 2010) was a Latin American Painting, painter and journalist. Cueva was born in Cuenca, Ecuador, Cuenca. He was the second son of Carlos Cueva Tamaríz (1898–1991) and his wife Rosa Esther Jar ...

in Ecuador in order to departure with him to

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

. Her father-in-law was the politician Carlos Cueva Tamaríz.

Education and career

She began to dance in 1945 in

Guayaquil , motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America , pushpin_re ...

. February 21, 1957 she traveled to London due to a scholarship to perfectionate her dancing at

The Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded in ...

. By then, Vera was already a prominent figure in her home country and her departure was well publicitied in the media. She danced 1958 in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

under Gzovsky and Jeanine Charrat. 1960 she went to

with her husband, where she worked with

Alicia Alonso Alicia Alonso (born Alicia Ernestina de la Caridad del Cobre Martínez del Hoyo; 21 December 1920 – 17 October 2019) was a Cuban prima ballerina assoluta and choreographer whose company became the Ballet Nacional de Cuba in 1955. She is best ...

until 1968 when she returned to her home country. In 1968 she presented ''Affirmation'', a ballet with music by

Carlos Chávez Carlos Antonio de Padua Chávez y Ramírez (13 June 1899 – 2 August 1978) was a Mexican composer, conductor, music theorist, educator, journalist, and founder and director of the Mexican Symphonic Orchestra. He was influenced by nativ ...

. Her interest for

modern dance Modern dance is a broad genre of western concert or theatrical dance which included dance styles such as ballet, folk, ethnic, religious, and social dancing; and primarily arose out of Europe and the United States in the late 19th and early 20th ...

took her to introduce the

Graham technique Graham technique is a modern dance movement style and pedagogy created by American dancer and choreographer Martha Graham (1894–1991). Graham technique has been called the "cornerstone" of American modern dance, and has been taught worldwi ...

for contemporary dance in Ecuador, which she had learned 1972 at the'' Martha Gram Dance School'' in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. The ''Ecuadorian National Ballet Company'' was created on 7 Juni 1976 in Quito and Noralma Vera, by then Director of the ''National Dance Institute'', was elected as part of the Directors Board. Vera founded 1978 her own ballet company and academy in her home city. After retiring from active dancing, Vera worked as a diplomat in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

and Cuba.

Awards

*''Distinción al Mérito Artístico'' (1955) *Premio Latinoamericano de Ballet (1956) *Reconocimiento al Mérito Artístico, Subsecretaria de Cultura (1994)

Trivia

It is said that her father invented the name ''Noralma'' for her. Today many women in the country are named Noralma after her.

References

Ecuadorian National Ballet Company

Vera is awarded with the ''Distinción al Mérito Artístico''

Noralma Vera leaves to England
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vera Arrata, Noralma Living people 1936 births Prima ballerinas People from Guayaquil Ballerinas

Education and career

Awards

Trivia

See also

References