Maria Tallchief

Maria Tallchief born Elizabeth Marie Tall Chief was an American ballerina She was considered Americas first major prima ballerina She was the first Native American to hold the rank and is said to have revolutionized ballet Almost from birth Tallchief was involved in dance starting formal lessons at age three When she was eight her family relocated from her birth home of Fairfax Oklahoma to Los Angeles California to advance the careers of her and her younger sister Marjorie At age 17 she moved to New York City in search of a spot with a major ballet company and at the urging of her superiors took the name Maria Tallchief She spent the next five years with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo where she met legendary choreographer George Balanchine When Balanchine cofounded what would become the New York City Ballet in 1946 Tallchief became the companys first star The combination of Balanchines difficult choreography and Tallchiefs passionate dancing revolutionized the ballet Her 1949 role in The Firebird catapulted Tallchief to the top of the ballet world establishing her as a prima ballerina Her role as the Sugarplum Fairy in The Nutcracker transformed the ballet from obscure to Americas most popular She traveled the world becoming the first American to perform in Moscows Bolshoi Theater She made regular appearances on American TV before she retired in 1966 After retiring from dance Tallchief was active in promoting ballet in Chicago She served as director of ballet for the Lyric Opera of Chicago for most of the 1970s and debuted the Chicago City Ballet in 1981 Tallchief was honored by the people of Oklahoma with multiple statues and an honorific day She was inducted in the National Womens Hall of Fame and received a National Medal of Arts In 1996 Tallchief received a Kennedy Center Honor for lifetime achievements Her life has been the subject of multiple documentaries and biographies