Maria Tallchief

Maria Tallchief
𐓏𐒰𐓐𐒿𐒷-𐓍𐓂͘𐓄𐒰
Maria Tallchief; 𐓏𐒰𐓐𐒿𐒷-𐓍𐓂͘𐓄𐒰
	Tallchief in 1961
Born	Elizabeth Marie Tall Chief; January 24, 1925; Fairfax, Oklahoma, U.S.
Died	April 11, 2013 (aged 88); Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Occupation	Prima ballerina
Years active	1942–1966
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Spouses	; George Balanchine; (m. 1946; ann. 1952) ; Elmourza Natirboff; (m. 1952; div. 1954) ; Henry D. Paschen Jr.; (m. 1956; died 2004)
Children	Elise Paschen
	Career
Former groups	Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo; New York City Ballet
Dances	Sugar Plum Fairy in Balanchine's Nutcracker; Title character in Balanchine's Firebird;

Maria Tallchief, born Elizabeth Marie Tall Chief (𐓏𐒰𐓐𐒿𐒷-𐓍𐓂͘𐓄𐒰 "Two-Standards"; Osage family name: Ki He Kah Stah Tsa, Osage script: 𐒼𐒱𐒹𐒻𐒼𐒰-𐓆𐓈𐒷𐓊𐒷; January 24, 1925 – April 11, 2013), was an Osage ballerina. She was America's first major prima ballerina and the first Native American to hold the rank. Together with Georgian-American choreographer George Balanchine, she is widely considered to have revolutionized American ballet.