Sally Brayley (also known as Sarah Brayley Bliss; born September 18, 1937) is a Canadian-American

ballet dancer 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 yea ...

. She has performed as a principal dancer with the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

and the

New York City Opera The New York City Opera (NYCO) is an American opera company located in Manhattan in New York City. The company has been active from 1943 through 2013 (when it filed for bankruptcy), and again since 2016 when it was revived. The opera company, du ...

. She was described by

Webster University Webster University is a private university with its main campus in Webster Groves, Missouri. It has multiple branch locations across the United States and countries across Europe, Asia, and Africa. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs ...

as "an internationally renowned ballet dancer, coach, and master teacher."

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

appointed her to the

National Council on the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

for a six-year term in 1986.

Early life and education

Brayley was born in London, England to Canadian parents on September 18, 1937. She was raised in

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. The ...

. Her father was a journalist and his career caused the family to make several moves, from

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

to Halifax. She began taking dance lessons at the age of five and the family ensured that she continued studying dance wherever they moved. She left high school to pursue a career in dance.

Career

In 1956, Brayley began dancing at the

National Ballet of Canada The National Ballet of Canada is a Canadian ballet company that was founded in 1951 in Toronto, Ontario, with Celia Franca as the first artistic director. A company of 70 dancers with its own orchestra, the National Ballet has been led since 2022 ...

. She left the company when she moved to New York in 1962. In the United States, she performed as a guest artist with the

American Ballet Theatre American Ballet Theatre (ABT) is a classical ballet company based in New York City. Founded in 1939 by Lucia Chase and Richard Pleasant, it is recognized as one of the world's leading classical ballet companies. Through 2019, it had an annual ei ...

and the

Joffrey Ballet The Joffrey Ballet is one of the premier dance companies and training institutions in the world today. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the Joffrey regularly performs classical and contemporary ballets during its annual performance season at Lyric O ...

. She performed as a principal dancer with the

and the

. In 1969, Brayley co-founded the Joffrey II Dancers, a ballet troupe for beginning dancers, and served as artistic director until 1986. There, she trained 16 dancers, including

Ron Reagan Ronald Prescott Reagan (born May 20, 1958) is an American liberal political commentator, writer, radio personality, television host, and dancer. He is a former radio host and political analyst for KIRO and Air America Radio, where he hosted his ...

, the son of President Ronald Reagan. In 1987, after

Antony Tudor Antony Tudor (born William Cook; 4 April 1908 – 19 April 1987) was an English ballet choreographer, teacher and dancer. He founded the London Ballet, and later the Philadelphia Ballet Guild in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., in the mid-1950 ...

's death, Brayley was named Trustee of the Antony Tudor Ballet Trust. In 1995, she left New York City and became Executive Director of Dance St. Louis. After working there for 11 years, she was named Executive Director Emeritus. At the company, Brayley widely expanded its education and outreach programs, established the organization's fundraising programs, and " aintainedan unbroken tradition of bringing extraordinary dance to St. Louis audiences." Brayley retired from Dance St. Louis in June 2006.

Honors and awards

The Sally Brayley Bliss Award is named after her and is awarded by Dance Nova Scotia to choreographers continuing with their dance studies. In 1986, Ronald Reagan appointed her for a six-year term to the National Council on the Arts, succeeding

Martha Graham Martha Graham (May 11, 1894 – April 1, 1991) was an American modern dancer and choreographer. Her style, the Graham technique, reshaped American dance and is still taught worldwide. Graham danced and taught for over seventy years. She wa ...

. In 1988, the Canadian Women’s Club of New York City honored Brayley as Woman of the Year.

Personal life

In 1967, Brayley married Anthony Addison Bliss, a lawyer who was the former General Manager of the Metropolitan Opera. They resided in

Oyster Bay, New York The Town of Oyster Bay is the easternmost of the three towns which make up Nassau County, New York, United States. Part of the New York metropolitan area, it is the only town in Nassau County to extend from the North Shore to the South Shore o ...

. Bliss died in 1991. The couple had two sons, Mark and Timothy. Brayley is a breast-cancer survivor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brayley, Sally Living people People from Halifax, Nova Scotia 1937 births Canadian ballerinas American ballerinas American female dancers Canadian female dancers National Ballet of Canada dancers Metropolitan Opera people Canadian expatriates in the United States