1. Valerie Elizabeth Bettis was an American modern dancer and choreographer.
15 Facts About Valerie Bettis
1. 2.
Valerie Bettis found success in musical theatre, ballet and as a solo dancer.
3.
Valerie Bettis was born in 1919 on either December 19 or December 20, in Houston, Texas.
4.
Valerie Bettis's parents were Royal Holt Bettis and Valerie Elizabeth Bettis.
5.
Valerie Bettis's father died when she was 13 years old, after which her mother married Hugh Prather.
6.
In 1943, Bettis married Bernardo Segall, who was then her company's music director, though the marriage ended in divorce in 1955.
7.
On September 26,1982, Valerie Bettis died at Beth Israel Medical Center in Manhattan at the age of 62.
8.
Valerie Bettis found success both as a modern dancer and as a choreographer, often both in the same production.
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Valerie Bettis was known for her "versatility, vivid stage presence, and flamboyant theatricality".
10.
Valerie Bettis began taking ballet lessons in Houston at the age of 10.
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Valerie Bettis attended the University of Texas for only one year, where she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta, before moving to New York City to study modern dance under Hanya Holm.
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Valerie Bettis performed and toured with Holm's company from 1937 tto 1940.
13.
In 1941, Valerie Bettis formed her own dance ensemble and began her career as a solo dancer.
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Valerie Bettis found early success with her 1943 solo dance The Desperate Heart, which incorporated the poem of the same name by John Malcolm Brinnin.
15.
Valerie Bettis first tried her hand at musical comedies when she choreographed and performed in Glad to See You in 1944.