{"id":18714,"date":"2023-02-03T17:42:00","date_gmt":"2023-02-03T17:42:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mobballet.org\/?p=18714"},"modified":"2025-04-21T07:16:20","modified_gmt":"2025-04-21T07:16:20","slug":"the-orbits-of-carmen-de-lavallade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mobballet.org\/index.php\/2023\/02\/03\/the-orbits-of-carmen-de-lavallade\/","title":{"rendered":"The Orbits of Carmen de Lavallade"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Constellation Project: Orbits of Carmen de Lavallade<\/h1>\n

American Ballet Theatre\u2019s\u00a0The Four Marys<\/em>\u00a0and Carmen de Lavallade<\/h2>\n
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Click to view American Ballet Theatre; The Four Marys Orbit<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"ImageCarmen de Lavallade served as one of the dancers in the 1964-1965 American Ballet Theatre production of\u00a0The Four Marys<\/em>, with music by\u00a0Trude Rittman<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0and choreography by\u00a0Agnes de Mille<\/a><\/strong>. In\u00a0The Four Marys<\/em>, she played the role of Mary Hamilton, one of the \u201cFour Marys,\u201d the maids of the young woman played by\u00a0Judith Taylor<\/a><\/strong>. The young woman\u2019s suitor falls in love with Mary Hamilton, the most beautiful of the Young Woman\u2019s maids, and their affair produces a child. After the child is born, Hamilton drowns it and is hanged for murder, and the suitor faces no consequence.<\/p>\n

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Carmen de Lavallade and Lester Horton<\/h2>\n
Lester Horton did not choreograph for American Ballet Theatre, but he interacted with several of its performers during their training and careers.\u00a0Carmen de Lavallade<\/a>, one of the Marys in de Mille\u2019s\u00a0<\/span>The Four Marys<\/em>, began her career at Lester Horton Dance Theater at 17 years old. While a member of the company, from 1950 to 1954, de Lavallade performed with Alvin Ailey, whose company she would later join.<\/div>\n
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Sources:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Carmen de Lavallade, MoBBallet<\/a>
\nMaudelle Bass, MoBBallet<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Arthur Mitchell and Carmen de Lavallade<\/h2>\n
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Return back to Arthur Mitchell \/ Carmen De Lavallade Orbit<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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In addition to being a member of Lester Horton Dance Theater, the Metropolitan Opera Ballet, and other major companies, Carmen de Lavallade was enlisted by Arthur Mitchell to join the American Negro Dance Company. In 1966, the company, originally sponsored by the US State Department, was to perform pieces by such choreographers as Alvin Ailey and George Balanchine. Other members included\u00a0John Jones<\/a>,\u00a0Llanchie Stevenson<\/a>, and\u00a0Sara Yarborough<\/a>. Though the performance was cancelled, this endeavor secured de Lavallade a place in Mitchell\u2019s orbit.<\/div>\n

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Husband and wife Geoffrey Holder and Carmen de Lavallade<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After de Lavallade began her successful career in choreography, she created\u00a0Sensemaya<\/i>\u00a0for the Dance Theatre of Harlem in 1979. The original cast of the piece, which premiered at City Center in February of that year, included\u00a0China (Melva) Murray White<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Karen Brown<\/a>. The ballet gathers inspiration from a Mayan creation myth.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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DTH\u2019s 2018 spring season opening, which commemorated the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.\u2019s assassination, honored artistic director Virginia Johnson as well as de Lavallade. That season, the company performed de Lavallade\u2019s staging of DTH\u2019s signature piece\u00a0Dougla<\/i>, which was choreographed by her husband Geoffrey Holder.<\/p>\n

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