Rebecca Wright
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Rebecca Wright (5 December 1947, Springfield, Ohio – 29 January 2006, Chevy Chase, Maryland) was an American ballerina, teacher, choreographer and ballet school director.


Biography

Her background in gymnastics and tap dance was a pivotal influence in early dance training under Josephine Schwarz at the
Dayton Ballet The Dayton Ballet is a ballet company based in Dayton, Ohio. The Dayton Ballet was founded in 1937, making it the second oldest regional ballet company in the United States. Dayton Ballet seasons typically comprise four works—familiar tradition ...
. In 1966, she joined the then prominent but small Joffrey Ballet as a principal until 1975, becoming a soloist with American Ballet Theatre (ABT) until her retirement from dance in 1982. She can be seen on television and on DVD as The Doll in Mikhail Baryshnikov's production of ''
The Nutcracker ''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchai ...
'', which was telecast in 1977. After her retirement, she married fellow dancer
George de la Peña George de la Peña (born December 9, 1955) is an American ballet dancer, musical theatre performer, choreographer, actor, and teacher. He was born in 1955 in New York City, New York. Originally trained as a concert pianist, de la Peña switched t ...
(who appears in the Baryshnikov ''Nutcracker'') and turned to teaching and choreographing including serving as full time ballet faculty at
California Institute of the Arts The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a private art university in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for students of both ...
before becoming director of the Washington School of Ballet in 2004. De la Peña and Wright had two children before they separated. She held a dance professorship at the University of California at Los Angeles and was director of dance programs at Adelphi University in Garden City, New York. She also spent several years as director of dance programs at the private St. Paul's School in Concord, NH. In 2004, she succeeded Mary Day, the founder of the Washington School of Ballet and
Washington Ballet The Washington Ballet (TWB) is an ensemble of professional ballet dancers based in Washington DC. It was founded in 1976 by Mary Day, and has been under the artistic directorship of Julie Kent since 2016. Septime Webre was artistic director fo ...
, who had run the school for 60 years. Sarah Kaufman
"Troubled Washington Ballet Is Further Shaken by Death Of Its School's Director"
''The Washington Post'', January 31, 2006.
She died in 2006 at her home in Chevy Chase, Maryland, of
cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...
.


References

Ballet teachers Ballet choreographers 1947 births 2006 deaths American ballerinas American Ballet Theatre dancers University of California, Los Angeles faculty Adelphi University faculty People from Springfield, Ohio 20th-century American ballet dancers {{Ballet-bio-stub