E. Virginia Williams was a Determined Woman
My Great Aunt, born Ellen Virginia Williams had a vision as a child to have a successful school of dance. Though she took dance lessons at the age of five, she was not a great ballerina. Her talent was teaching others and her determination to see her vision become realized. She put her whole being into producing what she wanted to accomplish. Not many people are willing to risk everything to reach their goal. Virginia was that kind of person.
I was privileged to have known her. My wife and I saw her performances from her box seat at the Wang Theater in Boston.We saw her at family gatherings in Salem Willows and had her at our family home in Boston. I learned some of my genealogy secrets from her. She was very down to earth and cared about family and friends. When it came to her business, she was tough and dedicated. Even at her home, the Christmas tree would go up after Christmas was over. Her ballet company came first and The Nutcracker was in high season.
Virginia began teaching at the age of 16. She started several schools in Stoneham, Malden, Melrose and Boston. My aunt Frances Dyson Williams was her first pupil in Stoneham. My own mother, Janis Williams had a school in Allston, MA when she was 16. Her sister Phyllis Williams had a school in Randolph for many years. Both had worked with Aunt Virginia. Dance teaching was in the blood. Virginia’s strong determination built the Boston Ballet Company from the ground up.
Originally, it was the New England Civic Ballet in 1958. Then with a Ford Foundation grant and assistance from George Balanchine at N.Y. Civic Ballet, the Boston Ballet came into being in1964. She was the Founder as well as the Artistic Director. She did some of her own choreography for Boston as well as for the Joffrey and Pennsylvania Ballets. She brought in many famous guest artists such as Margot Fonteyn, Edward Villella and Natalia Nureyev. In1980, she brought ballerina Violette Verdy from the Paris Ballet to be her Co-Director.
In 1979, Virginia took her pride; the Boston Ballet on a World Tour. Boston Ballet opened the Nervi Festival in Italy, and in 1980 made history as the First American Dance Company to perform in the People's Republic of China. The Company made its London premiere in 1981, with a full-length production of Swan Lake. In 1983, Boston Ballet presented Don Quixote on Broadway with Rudolf Nureyev as special guest star, after touring the United States, Mexico, France, and Italy. Virginia died on 8 May 1984 from complications after surgery.
Today, The Boston Ballet continues as a professional dance company with world renown. Her Boston School of Ballet is the largest dance school in North America. It will soon celebrate fifty years of operation. My mother and Aunt Frances are still alive at age ninety. Dance may have helped them to live long lives. Virginia’s memory will probably live on. Determination and Focus are part of her legacy. She was that kind of Woman.
