Lauren Anderson | |
|---|---|
 Anderson interviewed in 2013 | |
| Born | (1965-02-19)February 19, 1965 (age 60) |
| Occupation | Ballet dancer |
| Children | 1 |
| Career | |
| Former groups | Houston Ballet (1983–2006) |
Lauren Anderson (born February 19, 1965) is an Americanballet dancer and a formerprincipal dancer with theHouston Ballet. In 1990, she was one of the first African-American ballerinas to become a principal for a major dance company, an important milestone in American ballet.[1][2] She appeared in many ballets such asDon Quixote,Cleopatra, andThe Nutcracker.[3] She retired from the Houston Ballet in 2006 and retired from dance altogether in 2009.[3] In 2016, Anderson had herpointe shoes from her final performance placed in theSmithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.[4]
Lauren was the only child of Lawrence Anderson, a school administrator, and Doris Parker-Morales, a classical piano teacher. She was born inHouston, Texas, on February 19, 1965.[5] Anderson started dance lessons and lessons to learn the violin, but she chose to continue with dance instead of music due to the cost of lessons for both, and she felt that she could always pick up violin later in life.[6] From the age of seven she trained atHouston Ballet's Ben Stevenson Academy. She saw a performance ofArthur Mitchell's companyDance Theatre of Harlem which exposed her to ballerinas that looked like her since there weren't many African American ballerinas to look up to.[7] After starting lessons at the academy, Anderson performed in the ballet company's first production ofThe Nutcracker.[6] She is a Houston native and graduated fromLamar High School in 1982.[8] She attended theHouston Independent School District instead ofKinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts because there were projects due that would've interfered with her Nutcracker season rehearsals. While she attended the Stevenson Academy, Anderson began to become more serious about ballet, but she was told byBen Stevenson that her body was too muscular to be successful in ballet, and that she would be better inmusical theater. Instead, Anderson started a meatless diet to slim down and started takingPilates classes to lengthen her muscles.[9]
Anderson joined the Houston Ballet in 1983 at age 18 in thecorps de ballet, and she was promoted tosoloist four years later. Anderson became the first African Americanprincipal dancer at the Houston Ballet in 1990 .[10] She was the second African-American female ballet dancer to be promoted to principal dancer at a major American ballet company, eight years afterDebra Austin was promoted at thePennsylvania Ballet.[1]
Her performance of the title role inCleopatra gave her international recognition. She has also performed works byGeorge Balanchine,Sir Kenneth MacMillan, andChristopher Bruce, among others. Anderson originated the role ofCleopatra in the ballet of the same name created by Ben Stevenson, and her performance received reviews; theBoston Globe called Anderson "a powerhouse in interpreting the role that Stevenson created on her." Anderson was the first African-American principal dancer at Houston Ballet and the only African-American prima ballerina at the head of a major ballet company anywhere in the world. In 1990, Anderson was the recipient of the Special Jury Award at the International Ballet Competition, and she received the International Critics Award.[3]
Anderson retired from performance in 2006.[10] In January 2007, she became an outreach associate in the Houston Ballet's Education and Community Engagement program. In that capacity, she teaches ballet classes at Houston Ballet's academy and conducts master classes at schools in the Houston area. She is also in demand as a lecturer on the subject of ballet.[11] Also, in 2016, Anderson had her pointe shoes from her final performance placed in the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture.[4]
Anderson married Chris Stanaway in 2021. She has one son with former husband and jazz saxophonist Kyle Turner, who was born on April 30, 2003. Anderson is a devout Christian, and attends St. James Episcopal Church in Houston, where she is involved in forming the dance ministry ensemble, Holy Spirit Dancers. She often teaches at a professional school called "The Link School of the Arts" in Michigan. She calls The Link her "second home".[12] In 2019, Anderson revealed that until July 2009 that she was analcoholic. She was pulled over for speeding, and she soon found herself in county jail. After winding up in court, Anderson had a wake-up call from the judge. From that day on, Anderson has been sober and attendsAlcoholics Anonymous meetings everyday no matter where she is.[13] Since then, Anderson has been teaching classes to students all over to expose them to ballet by teaching lectures and movement classes.
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