Super Key
Music Studios
"Your One Shop Talent Stop"
* The "Five Moons" *
Native American Ballerinas  from Oklahoma

Rosella Hightower - Vinta, OK - Shawnee Tribe
Yvonne Chouteau - Durwood, OK - Choctaw
Moscelyne Larkin - Miami, OK - Peoria, Shawnee & Russian
Maria Tallchief - Fairfax, OK - Osage
Marjorie Tallchief - Fairfax, OK - Osage

a report by
Jessica J Oliver
I am Rosella Hightower; I was born in Durwood, Oklahoma, of Choctaw
heritage on January 10th, 1922. My parents Charles Edgar Hightower and
Eula May Fanning were married in 1910. I grew up on a farm and enjoyed
many chores to help my family. I was 5 when I moved with my family to
Kansas City Missouri after my father took a new position with Missouri -
Kansas - Texas railroad.

At a very young age my Aunt took me to my first ballet production and that
is when I fell in love with ballet. My Aunt convinced my mother to let me
start ballet classes. My first teacher Dorothy Perkins or as I called her
Perky had a huge impact on my ballet career. Perky taught from a
wheelchair due to an accident that left her paralyzed from the waist down. I
believe learning ballet from a teacher that could not demonstrate the ballet
moves gave me a huge advantage in my career. It gave me the ability to
work with chorographers by picking up ballet steps by just a movement of
the hand and a few words.

I began dancing in the most famous ballet productions and with some of
the most famous ballet companies. I starred in the production of Swan
Lake which I received an excellent review that I was the newest star on the
ballet horizon.

In 1937 Russian chorographer and ballet dancer Leonide Massine invited
me to join a new ballet company he was forming in Monte Carlo. I traveled
to France with no firm promise of employment but was finally accepted into
the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. I met Andre my future dance partner.
After World War II broke out I followed Ballet Russe to New York City where
I joined the ballet theater in 1941.

In 1946 I joined Basil Ballet. The lead dancer became ill and I was asked to
replace her. I had never danced the part before but I had 5 hours of
rehearsal and received acclaim for dancing the part in Giselle.

In 1947 I accepted an invitation to join a new ballet company called de
Cuevas Ballet.

I married Jean Robier in 1951. We had 1 daughter Dominique, Born on
Feb. 18, 1955. Our daughter became a dancer. I remained with the de
Cuevas ballet company until the owner's death in 1961. I opened my own
ballet school in 1962 near my home in Cannes. It became one of Europe's
leading ballet schools.

I continued to teach and dance until I passed away at my home in France
on Nov. 4, 2008.
Foreword
by
Mark Schwartz
Jessica is currently a piano student of mine. Jessica has been taking
lessons since Aug. 10, 2010.During our lesson one day Jessica mentioned
she had completed a report at school on Rosella Hightower. That brought
up the topic in which my older brother Anthony D Schwartz had played
piano during rehearsals for Yvonne Chouteau another one of the "Five
Moons" or Native Prima Ballerinas of Oklahoma.

In 1962 Yvonne Chouteau and her husband Miguel Terekhov founded the
first fully accredited university dance program in the United States, at the
University of Oklahoma.

Tony remembers he had improvised original compositions during the
rehearsals while Yvonne and Miguel's students were going through their
routines. He also remembers Rosella Hightower visiting the classes from
time to time.
Jessica's Report