Verla Flowers (October 31, 1913 – March 16, 2002) was an American dancer and dance educator, based in Seattle, Washington. One of her students was choreographer Mark Morris.
Verla Flowers | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 31, 1913 |
| Died | March 16, 2002 |
| Other names | Verla Flowers Halladay (after marriage) |
| Occupation(s) | Dancer, dance educator |
Early life
editVerla Flowers was from Seattle, the daughter of Charles Herbert Flowers and Augusta Flowers. Her father was a machinist, and both parents were active in labor union work.[1] She had a younger sister, Lorna; they performed as a child duet, and were known as the Halloween Sisters, because they were both born on October 31.[2] She graduated from Ballard High School in 1931, and the Cornish College of the Arts, where she studied under Welland Lathrop.[3]
Career
editFlowers began to teach dance when she was a teenager. For decades, Flowers was the proprietor of Verla Flowers Dance Arts in Seattle's Greenwood neighborhood, and trained generations of Seattle's young dancers.[4] One of her young students was choreographer Mark Morris; she encouraged the gifted teenager to teach, to study ballet and fencing, and to create his own dances for studio recitals.[5][6] Morris recalled her as "unbelievably fabulous, and generous, and supportive and great."[2] When she retired in 1990, she sold her business mailing list to Elizabeth Chayer, of the American Dance Institute in Seattle and Shoreline, Washington.[7]
Personal life
editVerla Flowers married Theodore Vernon Halladay in 1941.[8] They had a daughter, Wendy Jean. Verla Flowers Halladay died in 2002, aged 88 years.[9][10] A scrapbook from her childhood is in the University of Washington Libraries.[3]
References
edit- ^ Helice. "Verla Flowers". Pacific Northwest Features. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ a b McFarland, Melanie (March 21, 2002). "Verla Flowers' life was all about dance". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ a b "Archives West: Verla Flowers scrapbook, circa 1921-1940". University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ "Obituary for Verla Flowers (Aged 88)". News-Press. 2002-03-22. p. 23. Retrieved 2020-04-12 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Shilling, Jane (11 November 2019). "I dance, you watch: Mark Morris, unfiltered". Prospect. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ Acocella, Joan Ross; Morris, Mark (2004). Mark Morris. Wesleyan University Press. pp. 20–34. ISBN 978-0-8195-6731-4.
- ^ "Our History". American Dance Institute. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ "Seattle Girl, Former Falls Youth Married". Great Falls Tribune. 1941-08-31. p. 21. Retrieved 2020-04-12 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Verla Halladay Obituary - Seattle, WA". Dignity Memorial. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
- ^ "Deaths: Verla Flowers". The Post-Crescent. 2002-03-22. p. 2. Retrieved 2020-04-12 – via Newspapers.com.
