History, Art
America’s Prima Ballerina
The incredible ballet journey of Maria Tallchief
Source-Public Domain
Maria Tallchief became one of America’s first prime Ballerina who made an invaluable contribution to ballet dance. She became one of the first female Americans who infused ballet in American art and culture that was sustainably present in Europe and Russia.
Tallchief’s created her niche in learning a strenuous and technical dance form and was equally proud to represent her Native American heritage not only in America but all around the globe.
She was the recipient of various accolades and awards for performing arts and her life has become a subject of multiple documentaries and biographies.
The early life of Maria Tallchief
Elizabeth Marie Tall Chief (her birth name) was born on January 14, 1925, in Fairfax, Oklahoma to Alexander Joseph Tall Chief, a member of the Osage Nation, and his wife, Ruth of Scottish-Irish descent.
She and her younger sister Marjorie had an Osage upbringing and their grandma would tell them stories of Osage. How the US government and white people encroached on their land and forced the Osage to move to the barren land of Oklahoma that included Fairfax.
