Virginia Johnson – MOBBallet.org

Skip to content

About MoBB
Symposium M.I.A.
Roll Call
Timeline
Contact
Press Room
Digital Learning Hub
The Constellation Project
Consulting Services

Virginia Johnson

Commentary: Race, Equity, and Otherness in Ballet and Society, Curated and introduced by Ta-Nehisi Coates

A Continuing Inspiration... Former DTH Principal not Artistic Director Virginia Johnson

New Dance Magazine Online Column: Is Ballet Brown Bagging it?

TIMELINE ENTRIES

1890 – Maria Sergeyevna Skorsiuk joins the Russian Imperial Ballet
1846 – George Washington Smith dances Albrecht in the first American production of Giselle
1868 – George Washington Smith Restages The Black Crook
1919 – Ella Gordon opens the Gordon School of Dance in New York City
1926 – Essie Marie Dorsey founds the Essie Marie Dorsey School of Dancing / Mabel Jones Freeman founds the Studio for Classical Dancing
1931 – Katherine Dunham forms Ballet Négre
1933 – Hemsley Winfield dances in and choreographs Metropolitan Opera’s The Emperor Jones
1937 – American Negro Ballet gives its debut performance / Mildred B. Haessler founds the Mildred B. Haessler Ballet Company in Chicago, Illinois
1939 – Bernice Hammond founds Hammond Dance Studio, Washington DC
1940 – Negro Unit of Ballet Theatre is founded
1941 – Jones-Haywood School of Ballet is founded in Washington DC
1946 – Sydney King and Marion Cuyjet found the Sydney-Marion School of Dance in Philadelphia / The First Negro Classic Ballet is founded
1947 – First Negro Classic Ballet debuts / Talley Beatty and Betty Nichols perform Lew Christensen’s Blackface with Balanchine’s Ballet Society
1948 – Therrell C. Smith School of Dance is founded in Washington DC / Ruth Williams School of Dance is founded in NYC / Sydney King School of Dance is founded in Philadelphia, PA / Marion Cuyjet founds the Judimar School of Dance
1950 – Arthur Bell dances in the World Premiere of Frederick Ashton’s Illuminations with New York City Ballet
1951 – Janet Collins joins the Metropolitan Opera Ballet
1952 – Louis Johnson performs in Jerome Robbins’ Ballade with NYCB
1954 – Negro Dance Theater is founded / Delores Browne, John Jones, and Billy Wilson perform in Antony Tudor’s Offenbach in the Underworld
1955 – Arthur Mitchell joins New York City Ballet / Raven Wilkinson joins the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in New York City / Janet Collins retires from the Metropolitan Opera Ballet
1957 – Ward Fleming founds Ballet Americana/New York Negro Ballet
1960 – The Philadelphia School of Dance Arts is founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania / Thaddeus Hayes founds Thaddeus Hayes Dance Theatre in Norfolk, Virginia
1961 – The Capitol Ballet Company is founded in Washington DC / Raven Wilkinson leaves the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo / Sylvester Campbell, Benjamin Feliskdal, and Billy Wilson join the Dutch National Ballet
1962 – Arthur Mitchell is promoted to Principal with New York City Ballet
1965 – Judith Jamison, Carmen de Lavallade, Glory Van Scott, and Cleo Quitman perform with American Ballet Theatre in Agnes de Mille’s The Four Marys
1966 – Cleo Quitman performs with the Joffrey Ballet in Eugene Loring’s These Three / Elizabeth Ann Thompson Joins Radio City Ballet Company
1967 – Sara Yarborough joins Harkness Ballet / Raven Wilkinson joins the Dutch National Ballet as a Soloist
1968 – John Jones leaves Jerome Robbins Ballet / Keith Lee joins American Ballet Theatre
1969 – Arthur Mitchell and Karel Shook form The Dance Theatre of Harlem
1970 – Sylvester Campbell leaves the Dutch National Ballet / Dance Theatre of Harlem premieres at Jacobs Pillow
1971 – Debra Austin joins New York City Ballet at the age of 16 / Sara Yarborough Smith leaves Harkness Ballet / DTH Performs at the Guggenheim Museum in New York
1972 – DTH gets permanent location / Anna Benna Sims joined the Grand Ballet Canadiens +
1973 – Sandra Fortune of the Capitol Ballet competes in the International Ballet Competition/Christopher Boatwright joins the Stuttgart Ballet
1974 – Anthony Bassae co-founds the Trockadero de Monte Carlo / Dance Theatre of Harlem debuts flesh-tone tights and shoes
1975 – Lydia Abarca becomes the first Black female ballerina on the cover of Dance Magazine / Keith Lee leaves American Ballet Theatre / Sylvester Campbell leaves Béjart
1978 – Anne Benna Sims joins American Ballet Theatre
1980 – Debra Austin joins the Zurich Ballet
1982 – Debra Austin is hired as a principal with Pennsylvania Ballet / Alonzo King LINES Ballet is founded
1983 – Lauren Anderson joins Houston Ballet
1985 – Noel Wallace becomes the first Black dancer with London Festival Ballet
1986 – Brenda Edwards becomes first Black female dancer with English National Ballet
1990 – Dance Theatre of Harlem dancers perform with the Royal Ballet in The Nutcracker / Lauren Anderson is promoted to principal for the Houston Ballet
1991 – Evan Williams becomes first Black British dancer to join the Birmingham Royal Ballet / Albert Evans is promoted to soloist with New York City Ballet
1998 – Carlos Acosta joins the Royal Ballet / Rubinald Rofino Pronk joins Dutch National Ballet as a soloist at age 16
2001 – Cassa Pancho founds Ballet Black
2006 – Collage Dance Collective is founded in New York City / Eric Underwood joins the Royal Ballet
2007 – Misty Copeland is promoted to soloist at American Ballet Theatre
2013 – Tyrone Singleton is promoted to principal with Birmingham Royal Ballet
2014 – Yonah Acosta is promoted to the rank of principal with the English National Ballet
2015 – MoBBallet launches / Misty Copeland is promoted to principal at American Ballet Theatre / Marcelino Sambé is promoted to soloist with the Royal Ballet.
2016 – Céline Gittens of the Birmingham Royal Ballet and Francesca Hayward of the Royal Ballet are promoted to principal dancers
2018 – Nikisha Fogo of the Wiener Staatsballett and Claudia Monja of the Joburg Ballet are promoted to principal dancers

Back to Animated Timeline

Search MoBBallet.org

FOLLOW MoBBALLET

Created and Maintained at MOBBallet.org with design assistance from LUX55.com