Great Women: the Five Moons
At a time when ballet was thought to be accessible only to wealthy, cultured families who could afford the lessons, costumes, etc., five young Native American women from Oklahoma proved that anyone could master this art form, no matter their heritage or social and economic station in life. In 2007, these remarkable women were commemorated in an outdoor sculpture in Tulsa known as the Five Moons, which has become their collective designation. All but one of them is now deceased. They are: Yvonne Chouteau, 1926-2016, of the Shawnee and Cherokee. She grew up in Vinita, Oklahoma. At age 14 her exceptional talent won her a place with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. She married a Uruguayan-born man, Miguel Tereghov, and returned to Oklahoma to found the Oklahoma City Civic Ballet, now known as the Oklahoma City Ballet. Rosella Hightower, 1920-2008, of the Choctaw. She was born in Durwood, Oklahoma. She studied ballet in Kansas City, and New...