"You do what you have to do, and when you must, then you do a little more."

Public Domain Photo via Wikimedia Commons

• ​BALLERINA
• FIRST American Prima Ballerina, and the FIRST Native American Prima Ballerina
• Born Elizabeth Marie Tall Chief, her father was a member of the Osage Nation
• Started taking piano and dance classes at three years old, and considered becoming a professional pianist before committing to ballet
• Her family moved from the Osage Reservation when she was 8 years old to Los Angeles, where she was ostracized and tormented because of her Native American heritage
• While still in high school, Sergei Denham offered her a spot in the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo training program, but she stayed in Los Angeles and graduated before moving to New York
• REFUSED to change her last name to something that sounded more Russian -- a common practice among American ballet dancers, who were often considered inferior to their Russian counterparts
• Married legendary choreographer George Balanchine in 1946 and served as his muse, originating some of the most iconic characters in ballet, including the Sugar Plum Fairy (Nutcracker), the Firebird (Firebird), and the Swan Queen (Swan Lake)
• Cast as Anna Pavlova in the 1952 movie Million Dollar Mermaid, a biopic about swimmer Annette Kellerman
• Founded the Lyric Opera ballet school in the 1970s
• Her sister, Marjorie, also became a well known ballerina in Europe

Bibliography: Adams, Ebony and Anita Sarkeesian. History vs. Women: The Defiant Lives That They Don't Want You To Know. New York: Feiwel and Friends, 2018. Print.
Anderson, Jack. (2013, April 12). Maria Tallchief, a Dazzling Ballerina and Muse for Balanchine, Dies at 88. https://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/13/arts/dance/maria-tallchief-brilliant-ballerina-dies-at-88.html

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