Janet Collins
The prima-ballerina was the first African American to debut at the New York Metropolitan Opera in 1951. Her eclectic style compelled her to persevere and choreograph dance until she retired in her late forties. As a teen she refused to paint her face white in order to perform with a dance company. She once said, “I thought talent mattered, not color.” Janet Collins, prima ballerina of the Metropolitan Opera House in the early 1950's and one of a very few black women to become prominent in American classical ballet, died on Wednesday in Fort Worth. She was 86 and lived there.Ms. Collins taught dance, choreographed, performed on Broadway and in film and appeared frequently on television. But she was best known as the exquisitely beautiful dancer who was the first black artist to perform at the Metropolitan, four years before Marian Anderson sang there.
''She was a great inspiration to me as a child in Trinidad,'' the dancer and painter Geoffrey Holder said. ''What she did by dancing the way she did -- to be prima ballerina at the Metropolitan Opera House -- gave everybody hope.''
Ms. Collins made her New York debut in 1949, dancing in her own choreography on a shared program at the 92nd Street Y. John Martin, dance critic of The New York Times, described her as ''the most exciting young dancer who has flashed across the current scene in a long time,'' calling her style an eclectic mix of modern dance and ballet.
''She was a great inspiration to me as a child in Trinidad,'' the dancer and painter Geoffrey Holder said. ''What she did by dancing the way she did -- to be prima ballerina at the Metropolitan Opera House -- gave everybody hope.''
Ms. Collins made her New York debut in 1949, dancing in her own choreography on a shared program at the 92nd Street Y. John Martin, dance critic of The New York Times, described her as ''the most exciting young dancer who has flashed across the current scene in a long time,'' calling her style an eclectic mix of modern dance and ballet.