We interviewed Julia Wilkinson Manely, the school director at Ballet Nouveau Colorado.


Here is a little bit about her copied from the BNC website:


"Julia Wilkinson Manley began her training with Cristina Munro (London Festival Ballet, Eliot Feld) in Corpus Christi, Texas. She danced extensively with the Corpus Christi Ballet, performing soloist roles for 6 years. Julia attended the Boston Ballet Centre for Dance Education, where she studied with Tatiana Legat, Elena Solovieva and Laura Young. She trained with the Houston Ballet Academy and at the University of Oklahoma, where she received a BFA in ballet pedagogy and danced soloist roles in Balanchine’s Serenade, Miguel Terekhov’s Four Moons, Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker, as Sugar Plum Fairy, as well as numerous solo roles choreographed for her by Mary Margaret Holt (Houston Ballet, San Francisco Ballet). She toured with Ballet Ireland under the direction of Gunther Falusy, and performed with David Taylor Dance Theatre and Ballet Nouveau Colorado. An award-winning choreographer, Julia premiered her first work at age 15. Her work has been performed by numerous companies, including Corpus Christi Ballet, David Taylor Dance Theatre, and Ballet Nouveau Colorado."

 

Q: In what way do you think Maria Tallchief changed history for others?
A: She was one of the first Native American ballerinas, which changed perceptions about who could dance in America at a time when segregation was the norm.  She was/is also a strong-willed, single-minded woman, which brought great admiration and respect to women in dance.



Q: Where do you think other Native American ballet dancers would be now if it was not for her?
A: Hard to say…there is not a strong community for Native American ballet dancers today, although some individuals have risen to fame.  For example, former New York City Ballet dancer Jock Soto is Navajo.  I think the five Native American ballerinas encouraged multiple minority groups to dance.



Q: We said that she helped make others dreams come true; In what way do you think that is true and not true?
A: All of Maria’s dreams, and more, came true (referring to her dreams in dance).  Because she was successful in her endeavors, others were encouraged to follow their dreams.



Q: Was Maria ever an influence on any ballet dancers/and you during the time you took lessons?
A: She was an influence on me because of her history with Balanchine, but my ballet teacher, Mary Margaret Holt, actually got to see her dance in New York.  Ms. Holt idolized her as a teenager for her strength, power, and presence on stage.


Q: What do you think other dancers thought of Maria at the time?
A: They all looked up to her.  She had integrity as a company dancer and treated people with kindness, but she also had very high expectations for herself and her fellow dancers.



Q: If you could take one thing away from Maria's dancing what would it be?
 A: Her ferocious attack in her movement.