Lauren Anderson (dancer) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lauren Anderson
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Anderson interviewed in 2013
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| Born | February 19, 1965 |
| Occupation | Ballet dancer |
| Children | 1 |
| Former groups | Houston Ballet (1983–2006) |
Lauren Anderson (born February 19, 1965) is a famous American ballet dancer. She was a top dancer, called a principal dancer, with the Houston Ballet. In 1990, she made history as one of the first African-American ballerinas to become a principal dancer for a big dance company. This was a very important moment in American ballet.
Lauren Anderson performed in many well-known ballets. These included Don Quixote, Cleopatra, and The Nutcracker. She stopped dancing with the Houston Ballet in 2006. She then fully retired from dancing in 2009. In 2016, her special pointe shoes from her last performance were placed in the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. This shows how important her career was.
Early Life and Training
Lauren Anderson was born in Houston, Texas, on February 19, 1965. She was the only child of Lawrence Anderson, a school leader, and Doris Parker-Morales, a piano teacher. Lauren started taking dance lessons when she was young. She also began learning to play the violin.
She chose to focus on dance because of the cost of lessons for both. She felt she could always learn violin later. From age seven, she trained at the Houston Ballet's Ben Stevenson Academy. She saw a performance by Arthur Mitchell's company, Dance Theatre of Harlem. This was inspiring because she saw ballerinas who looked like her. There were not many African-American ballerinas to look up to at that time.
After starting at the academy, Anderson performed in the ballet company's first show of The Nutcracker. She grew up in Houston and finished Lamar High School in 1982. She chose her local school instead of a performing arts school. This was because projects at the arts school would have stopped her from rehearsing for The Nutcracker.
While at the Stevenson Academy, Lauren became very serious about ballet. Her teacher, Ben Stevenson, once told her that her body was too muscular for ballet. He suggested she might be better at musical theater. Instead, Lauren worked hard to change her body. She started a meatless diet to become slimmer. She also took Pilates classes to make her muscles longer and more flexible.
Ballet Career Highlights
Lauren Anderson joined the Houston Ballet in 1983 when she was 18. She started in the corps de ballet, which is the group of dancers who perform together. Four years later, she was promoted to a soloist. This meant she performed more important parts.
In 1990, Lauren Anderson became the first African-American principal dancer at the Houston Ballet. This was a huge achievement. She was the second African-American female ballet dancer to reach this high level in a major American ballet company. Debra Austin was the first, eight years earlier, at the Pennsylvania Ballet.
Her performance as the main character in Cleopatra brought her international fame. She also performed works by famous choreographers like George Balanchine and Sir Kenneth MacMillan. Anderson was the first to dance the role of Cleopatra in the ballet created by Ben Stevenson. Critics praised her performance. The Boston Globe newspaper called her "a powerhouse" in the role.
Lauren Anderson was not only the first African-American principal dancer at Houston Ballet. She was also the only African-American prima ballerina leading a major ballet company anywhere in the world at that time. In 1990, she won the Special Jury Award at the International Ballet Competition. She also received the International Critics Award.
Anderson stopped performing in 2006. In January 2007, she started a new role. She became an outreach associate for the Houston Ballet's Education and Community Engagement program. In this job, she teaches ballet classes at the Houston Ballet's academy. She also leads special classes at schools in the Houston area. Many people also ask her to give talks about ballet.
Personal Life and Activities
Lauren Anderson married Chris Stanaway in 2021. She has one son, born in 2003, with her former husband, jazz saxophonist Kyle Turner. Lauren is a dedicated Christian. She attends St. James Episcopal Church in Houston. There, she helps to create a dance group called the Holy Spirit Dancers.
She often teaches at a professional school called "The Link School of the Arts" in Michigan. She considers this school her "second home." Since 2009, Anderson has been teaching classes to students everywhere. She wants to share ballet with them by giving lectures and movement classes.
