Hidden Figures: Raven Wilkinson #BlackHERstoryMonth 4/28 (Patreon)

Hidden Figures: Raven Wilkinson #BlackHERstoryMonth 4/28

Ann Raven Wilkinson, known professionally as Raven Wilkinson, (February 2, 1935 – December 17, 2018) was an American dancer who is credited with having been the first Black American woman to dance for a major classical ballet company. Wilkinson broke the color barrier in 1955 when she signed a contract to dance full-time with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. She was promoted to soloist during her second season with the troupe, and remained with the company for six years. Wilkinson later became a mentor to American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Misty Copeland. Anne Raven Wilkinson was born in New York City on February 2, 1935, to Anne James Wilkinson and Dr. Frost Bernie Wilkinson, a dentist. Wilkinson became a ballet fan at the age of five after seeing Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo perform Coppelia. For her ninth birthday, an uncle made her the gift of ballet lessons. Seeking to become a professional dancer, Wilkinson first auditioned for a position with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in 1954. Twice she was rejected; on her third try, Sergei Denham, the company’s director, informed her that she would be accepted into the Company on a six-week trial basis. Wilkinson advanced to the position of soloist in her second season with Ballet Russe and remained with the group for six years. She performed with the company across the U.S, and touring throughout the country, including the racially segregated South, became a dangerous endeavor. In order to perform with the Company in the South, Wilkinson was asked not to publicize her race and to wear white makeup onstage to conceal her racial identity. In 1957 an owner of a hotel in Atlanta, Georgia, asked Wilkinson if she was black. When she refused to lie, she was barred from staying at the hotel with the rest of the Company. During the same tour two members of the Ku Klux Klan bolted on stage, interrupting a Company performance in Montgomery, Alabama, asking “Where’s the nigra?” When none of the Company members responded to them, the men left. As word of Wilkinson's racial identity spread, discrimination became increasingly problematic. The director of the company forbid her from dancing in certain locations and sent her ahead to safer cities on the tour. Exhausted by years of discrimination, Wilkinson left the company in 1961. In the mid-1960s, Sylvester Campbell, an African-American principal dancer with the Dutch National Ballet, suggested Wilkinson approach that company. She was invited to join the troupe as second soloist. She moved to the Netherlands in 1967 and stayed with the Dutch National Ballet for seven years. In 1974, at the age of 38, a homesick Wilkinson returned to the U.S. When she returned to New York, the New York City Opera asked her to dance. She performed with them from 1974 until 1985. She continued with the opera as a character dancer and actor until 2011 when the company disbanded. Raven Wilkinson died on December 17, 2018 at her home in Manhattan. She was 83. #RavenWilkinson #HiddenFigures ****************** Merchandise! MAKE SURE U GETTA SHIRT!! https://www.teepublic.com/user/sssseren Follow me on social media! Instagram: @sensei_aishitemasu Personal Tumblr: http://sensei-aishitemasu.tumblr.com Tumblr for my work: https://sssseren.tumblr.com Snapchat: sssseren GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/tc5wh7q Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/seren_sensei ****************** Did you know I wrote a book? ☺️ 'So, About That... A Year of Contemporary Essays on Race and Pop Culture' Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/About-That-Contemporary-Essays-Culture-ebook/dp/B013V0CHK6 Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B013V0CHK6 Digital download (e-book): https://gumroad.com/l/IkUa ****************** Links: Ballerina Raven Wilkinson #AtTheJBFC: Dance on Film 2015 (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2NpruuNvXw A Conversation with Raven Wilkinson from Ballet Review Fall 2007: http://www.balletreview.com/images/Ballet_Review_35-3_Raven_Wilkinson.pdf 'Pioneer Ballerina Raven Wilkinson Has Passed Away At 83:' https://www.essence.com/entertainment/ballerina-raven-wilkenson-dead-at-83/ Raven Wilkinson, 83, Is Dead; Black Ballerina Braved Segregated South: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/20/obituaries/raven-wilkinson-dead.html Remembering Raven Wilkinson, Trailblazing Ballerina: https://www.pointemagazine.com/remembering-raven-wilkinson-trailblazing-black-ballerina-2623864149.html Ballerina Raven Wilkinson Dead at 83: http://www.playbill.com/article/ballerina-raven-wilkinson-dead-at-83 Raven Wilkinson, Ballet pioneer: https://aaregistry.org/story/raven-wilkinson-ballet-pioneer/ ANNE RAVEN WILKINSON (1935-2018): https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/wilkinson-anne-raven-1935/ Black ballerinas dancing on the edge: An analysis of the cultural politics in Delores Browne's and Raven Wilkinson's careers, 1954–1985: https://search.proquest.com/docview/251745832