Rebecca Wright
Encyclopedia
Rebecca Wright, was a ballerina, teacher, choreographer and ballet school director.
Her background in gymnastics and tap dance was a pivotal influence in early dance training under Josephine Schwarz at the Dayton Ballet
. 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
, which was first telecast in 1977.
After her retirement she married fellow dancer George de la Peña
(who also appears in the Baryshnikov Nutcracker) and turned to teaching and choreographing 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, NY. 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 legendary founder of the Washington School of Ballet and Washington Ballet
, who had run the school for 60 years. Under Wright's leadership school enrollment grew from 350 to 450 students.
She died in 2006 at her home in Chevy Chase, Maryland
of cancer.
Her background in gymnastics and tap dance was a pivotal influence in early dance training under Josephine Schwarz at the Dayton Ballet
Dayton Ballet
The Dayton Ballet is a professional ballet company located in Dayton, Ohio.It was founded in 1937, making it the second oldest regional ballet company in the United States. It is also called the "Company of Premieres" as it is committed to presenting new works, including a new full-length ballet...
. In 1966 she joined the then prominent but small Joffrey Ballet as a principal until 1975, becoming a soloist with American Ballet Theatre
American Ballet Theatre
American Ballet Theatre , based in New York City, was one of the foremost ballet companies of the 20th century. It continues as a leading dance company in the world today...
(ABT) until her retirement from dance in 1982. She can be seen on television and on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
as The Doll in Mikhail Baryshnikov
Mikhail Baryshnikov
Mikhail Nikolaevich Baryshnikov is a Soviet and American dancer, choreographer, and actor, often cited alongside Vaslav Nijinsky and Rudolf Nureyev as one of the greatest ballet dancers of the 20th century. After a promising start in the Kirov Ballet in Leningrad, he defected to Canada in 1974...
's production of The Nutcracker
The Nutcracker
The Nutcracker is a two-act ballet, originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The libretto is adapted from E.T.A. Hoffmann's story "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King". It was given its première at the Mariinsky Theatre in St...
, which was first telecast in 1977.
After her retirement she married fellow dancer George de la Peña
George de la Peña
George de la Peña is an American ballet dancer, musical theatre performer, choreographer, actor, and teacher. He was born in New York City, New York, U.S....
(who also appears in the Baryshnikov Nutcracker) and turned to teaching and choreographing 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, NY. 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 legendary founder of the Washington School of Ballet and Washington Ballet
Washington Ballet
The Washington Ballet is an ensemble of professional athletic classical ballet dancers. It was founded in 1976 by American ballet pioneer Mary Day, and has been under the artistic directorship of Septime Webre since 1999.-The Mary Day years :...
, who had run the school for 60 years. Under Wright's leadership school enrollment grew from 350 to 450 students.
She died in 2006 at her home in Chevy Chase, Maryland
Chevy Chase, Maryland
Chevy Chase is the name of both a town and an unincorporated census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland. In addition, a number of villages in the same area of Montgomery County include "Chevy Chase" in their names...
of cancer.