JUNE ’76 TO FEBRUARY ‘77

Everyone, Jaye, Carl and George included, was very excited about our upcoming trip to Washington, D.C. to perform at the Kennedy Center and, on the same trip, a stop in Philadelphia to perform in Independence Square. Prior to that, we would tour the Kennedy Center program, named the Bicentennial Parade of Idaho Music, through the big cities in Idaho with a group of 150 performers. That tour would be followed by an Idaho tour which, for the first time, would include Wyoming and Oregon. After the Christmas concert and break, there would be another, more expanded, National tour followed by another Idaho tour. The contract year would be a busy one, but a fun one.

In addition to the five returning dancers, the Company hired a married couple—Terryl and Mark Anderson—Pam Dyer, Kelly Wright and Barbara Casement. Kelly was a super guy, tall and brawny. He could lift the fat lady over his head if he had to and he was a decent dancer to boot. Barbara Casement was a lovely dancer and really nice person. She knew George from Duluth before she had gone to Germany to dance. She had it all and she was by-far the most accomplished dancer ever hired by Ballet Folk. Pam was another beautiful dancer if a bit stiff; she wasn’t the usual expressive Ballet Folk dancer but technically was very proficient. She was also a good size for Michael—which was helpful because the rest of us were so tall. We hired her sister, Chris, after the first tour. She wasn’t quite as good as Pam but she was peppier. Terryl and Mark were just average dancers. We didn’t even hit it off that well as friends—looking back they were snooty, private and stand-offish.

The Company also hired some help for Jonny—Nancy (Jonny’s girlfriend from Seattle) was our new costume mistress. We liked Nancy at first but after awhile she got on our nerves with her constant complaining. I do think it was good for Jonny though to have a main squeeze. Barbara Casement and Chuck Bonney hooked up too so there were a few more happy campers.

We spent the summer teaching the old repertoire to the new dancers and learning the new choreography as it was being created. During the touring season, we would be rotating three shows with a total of 13 different ballets. We didn’t have a workshop in Idaho Falls as we needed the time for choreography and rehearsal. There was a workshop in Moscow taught by Jaye and the guests choreographers—not the dancers. Old ballets we would be performing were: Franklin, Corelli, Hoe Down, Overture, Rainmaker, Simple Gifts, and Property. New ballets were Pelleas and Melisande, Requim, Songs, Tarantella, Pas de Trois and Eine Kleine Straussmusik.

The ballet we were to perform at the Kennedy Center was called Requim and the entire Company danced in it. According to the program notes, it was: “Based on the Ghost Dance of the American Indian. It speaks for all peoples, all life-styles, all species threatened by extinction.” Chuck Pizzaro and I were the featured dancers. We all wore our hair down and wild, tie-dyed dark tights and leotards, feathered arm bands, and black Pointe shoes. The choreography consisted of many thrown-back heads, arms reaching for the sky, feelings of angst and no smiling. It was a moving piece and generally well-liked although somber and morose.

Hy Sommers, a friend of George’s, came to set Pelleas and Melisande. Hy was a wonderful guest choreographer because he thought we were all super. We lapped up his compliments and goodwill something we didn’t get much of from Jaye and less-and-less-of from George. Barbara had worked with Hy previously in Duluth and was given the lead with Michael as her partner. The music and the costumes were very pretty and it wasn’t a difficult ballet for the chorus, of which I was one. This was another piece that didn’t last long in the repertoire. Looking back, none of the ballets choreographed by guest choreographers were kept—only those done by Jaye and George survived more than one season.

George choreographed two ballets for the new season—Tarantella and Pas de Trois. Tarantella was lively and fun. Most everyone in the Company danced in it with the girls wearing different colored spaghetti-strapped leotards with shear matching short skirts and the guys in different colored shirts under black tank-topped unitards. With pony-tails flying, we cavorted and flirted which is probably one reason the audience got into it so much. The program notes for Tarantella read: “Italian in origin, but completely American in style and spirit, this lively piece expresses the Ballet Folk Company’s joy of life and of the dance.” Pas de Trois was a dance for two girls and one guy—very challenging choreographically—and danced in the Danish Bournonville style. The dancers loved it—initially neither Mike nor I were cast, but over the years we both danced in it.

Songs was choreographed by guest choreographer—Mary Anthony, another ballet that lasted but one season. It was a modern piece which, gratefully, meant bare feet. It was danced by three couples “depicting young love” with Mike as my partner once again. We no longer fought when we danced together; over the years we developed mutual respect for each other’s art. It seemed, however, that I fought with everyone else. I was finally able to give up the part of the Mother in Rainmaker for the much jucier part of the Brother’s Wife with Chuck Pizzaro as my partner. Chuck’s favorite trick was sticking his tongue in my ear while we were supposed to be in a quiet, dream sequence. I think he did it just to hear me yell at him after the show. The last new ballet, Eine Kleine Straussmusik, was a throwback to Shone Nacht that we had performed the first season. It was a collaborative choreographic effort between George and Jaye.

By the end of the summer, we were ready to roll. Our first performance was in Moscow September 13th and replaced our usual “Opening” followed by performances in Twin Falls, Idaho Falls and Boise. We flew into Washington for the Kennedy Center performance on September 20th, my 26th birthday. Mom and Dad met us there; they just couldn’t miss it! The Bicentennial performances at the Kennedy Center were given by each of the 50 states with September 21st proclaimed as Idaho Day. Mom and Dad’s good friends and our former neighbors on Portsmouth, Joe and Jim Leydon, who lived in Washington, also came to the performance and we all went out to dinner afterward. It was a day to remember and I was literally glowing! The next day we had some time off which we spent visiting some of the museums and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Our next stop was Philadelphia where we performed outside the building where the Liberty Bell is housed. The article by Julie Monroe in the Idaho Statesman declared, “Performers’ Tour of East Termed a Big Success.”

During the following tour in October, Michael and I received the best review of our lives in Cheyene. The Wyoming State Tribune article by Margie Bagley and Marcia Mead stated, “Deanne Hurd, with her incredibly expressive body and mobile face, would be a standout in any company. She was especially effective as Willie, the young girl almost ready to put aside her dolls for the bittersweet experience of first love in Tennessee Williams’ This Property Is Condemned. Accomplished as an actress and a superb dancer, Miss Hurd enchanted the audience each time she performed. Michael Hurd, Deanne’s husband, is a dynamic and talented performer and was outstanding both as Tom, the young boy in the duet sequence with Willie and as Starbuck in the group’s lively adaptation of The Rainmaker”. During this tour we also performed in the resort town of Jackson Hole in the Grand Tetons—totally awesome scenery.

The Christmas performance was, once again, a mixed bag. Aside from the Second Act of the Nutcracker with Pam Dyer replacing Paula as the Sugar Plum Fairy, we performed Pas de Trois and Tarantella. The houses were packed, as usual, in Moscow, Pullman and Lewiston.

At this point in my life, I began a journal. The remainder of the ‘76/’77 season and the following ‘77/’78 were written at the time I was living it. The following summary was written in 1977, shortly after the National tour. I wrote it for Mom, Carla and myself for future reference.

SUMMARY OF THE BALLET FOLK 2ND NATIONAL TOUR - JANUARY 15, 1977 TO FEBRUARY 25, 1977

All of us in Ballet Folk are constantly arguing about what happened when and where on past tours, so this way I will have some concrete facts to help out my memory. Also, if I ever decide to write a book about my experiences or if anyone else in the Company ever decides the same, this should come in handy.

I guess you already know most of what happened on the way to Toledo—our flat tire on the bus after only two hours on the road, our brakes going out, our day delay in Boise, our 30-hour frozen bus ride to Omaha, and then our trouble again in Davenport, Iowa, which was even more nerve-wracking to Mike and I because we were getting so close to Toledo.

[Mom helped JoAnn schedule a performance at the University of Toledo that was absolutely the single most exciting performance of my Ballet Folk career. Many of my family, friends, and many of Mom and Dad’s friends came to the performance and to a party with the dancers at home after the performance. Mike and I were absolutely the center of attention, a place I was becoming more and more comfortable every day. George was in his element too in his new, black velvet suit that he was so proud to own. Dad secretly told me he found George and the suit effeminate and offensive; but, of course, I didn’t breathe a word of that to George.]

I must say that after our performance in Toledo, things went along smoothly until Wichita Falls. The party in Toledo was really great and it was so good to see everyone again. We felt like celebrities, and it was so nice to have people in the audience who knew us. So often other members of Ballet Folk have relatives and friends come see them that Mike and I frequently feel like orphans.

I guess that’s the good news and now for a little bad. The booking agency that got us our booking in Toledo (with Mom’s help, of course) went bankrupt shortly after our performance. Carl immediately filed whatever it is one files to get on a list of creditors awaiting payment. I guess once the company is liquidated and money is available, we may or may not get paid. But we are high on the list so Carl is fairly certain we will at least get part of it.

On the brighter side, JoAnn says she received nothing but the highest compliments from Dr. Carroll on the evaluation sheet Ballet Folk gives all the sponsors to fill out and return after the performance. There is a question at the end of the sheet that asks the organization if it would have Ballet Folk back again, and Dr. Carroll answered “Yes” to that. It doesn’t mean we will be coming back, but it is a possibility.

The morning after Mom dropped us at the motel, the bus wouldn’t start again. Chuck called someone to come give us a jump; and typical of the way things have been going, the man fell asleep for an hour-and-a-half before showing up. That is exactly what I did too, but when we finally got on the road, we were two hours behind schedule.

Platteville, Wisconsin – The drive to Platteville was uneventful; we arrived about 7:00 p.m. We did nothing that day but eat. The following day we had our performance and it went quite well. The facility wasn’t great—it was a multi-purpose room with a tiny stage and a low ceiling. Luckily we were doing Show III which doesn’t require as much room as II or I. We looked in the paper the next day but didn’t see a review. It could have been in the University paper though; and if they send it to Ballet Folk, JoAnn will make copies for us. I have been taking the pills Dr. Jones gave me and my ribs are feeling remarkable better. I’m still not taking any chances doing lifts though.

Barbara’s knee has really been bothering her lately. She tore cartilage while in Germany and had an operation to remove all the damaged tissue. However, this procedure left her knee weak and causes it to slip in-and-out of place easily. She popped it out-of-joint when she slipped during rehearsal the afternoon before the Toledo performance. It was still pretty swollen when she went to a doctor on campus at the University of Wisconsin. The doctor didn’t help at all as he told her to rest it. That is especially aggravating to hear while on tour so Barbara was pretty upset. Luckily I brought my infrared lamp from Moscow so we took turns trying to mend under it.

LaCrosse, Wisconsin – The following day, 1/25, we got up early and dressed up because the press will be waiting for us in LaCrosse. We drove 100 miles and got there just in time for our luncheon. TV, radio, and local newsmen were waiting for us along with a table full of wine and food. I didn’t realize it until then but Viterbo College is a Catholic college and there were quite a few nuns and priests at the luncheon drinking it up. One thing we will all remember about Viterbo is that every time we turned around, someone was handing us a glass of wine.

Everyone was so nice to us and so glad to see us that we felt like a “real” dance company. Most of the time people just ignore us or look at us like we’re freaks. George did a radio spot, a TV spot, and he even talked to a newspaper reporter but we never saw or heard anything. But then we were very busy the whole time we were there. The stage and dressing rooms were beautiful—there was even a dance studio right off the stage.

After the luncheon we went to our hotel—what a dump! The old Stoddard Hotel. The man working at the desk got all the rooms mixed up. We usually ask for 4 singles (meaning rooms with one double bed for the two married couples, Jonny and Nancy, and Barbara and Chuck) and 4 singles (for the 4 girls and 4 guys left). The married people ended up with rooms with two single beds and the others got rooms with two double beds. So Mike and I ended up sleeping in one single bed while Becky and Chris each had a double bed to themselves. We had to switch rooms finally because one of our beds totally broke in half and the other was like mush.

The great thing about the hotel, however, was its proximity to a restaurant called Bodega’s which was out-of-this-world. The hamburgers were the best I’ve ever tasted. It was a quaint deli-sort-of-place with incredible omelets served with brown toast, cherry preserves and cream cheese, and Bloody Mary’s served in ice cream soda glasses with beer chasers for $1.00. It was all made to look very old fashioned with antique furniture and stained glass windows. We didn’t eat anywhere else the whole six days we were in LaCrosse and we still hadn’t run out of things on the menu to try. Luckily it was only two blocks from the hotel because the entire time we were at Viterbo College it was below zero with a wind chill that dipped to -80 degrees.

After checking into the hotel, we went back to the studio by the stage and took class. It was nice to have mirrors for a change, but the floor was slippery so we never worked out in there again. The following day we had class and rehearsal in the afternoon on the stage, showed the film “The Making of Overture”, after which I taught a Modern dance class. While I was doing that, the rest of the Company got smashed on whiskey served to them in a little room where they were waiting for another reception. These people were big on treating us like royalty which was all right with us. At this reception too, there was plenty of wine!

The following three days were pretty awful. We would get to the theatre by 1:00, have class and rehearsal until 4:00, put make-up on, warm-up and then perform. We did Show I, II, and II in that order. The afternoon of the third day, we video-taped Requim in costume in front of a small audience. My toes were shot and my ribs were back to hurting. I got a blister on one of my toes just to make me a little more miserable. Then on the day after Show III, we had a Children’s show at 2:15 of Tarantella and Rainmaker. I was certainly ready for a rest. That was the worst part of the tour. After that it got considerably easier.

I thought you might be interested in a few historical facts about Viterbo College. The name Viterbo comes from a city in France where Saint Rose was born. She is the founder of the Order or nuns that teach at Viterbo. The motto of the Order is, “First heal the body and then heal the mind”, so the two degrees offered at the college are Nursing and Fine Arts. Their facilities for Fine Arts are the best I have seen anywhere except the University of Cincinnati.

Webster City, Iowa – We left LaCrosse at about 4:00 and didn’t arrive in Webster City until 10:00 that night. Our motel was beautiful; we had an indoor swimming pool and a sauna. The following day was finally a day off and we luxuriated in the pool and sauna—finally feeling better. Both my ribs and Barbara’s knee got a well-deserved break—and for some strange reason, my ribs never hurt again.

That evening we ate in the motel dining room and it was awful. I don’t see how once anyone ate there, they’d ever go back. We ordered a bottle of burgundy for dinner and it came chilled in a bucket of ice with a towel wrapped around it. When the waitress went to pour the wine, the towel dripped water everywhere.

The following day, we reluctantly went back to work. We had two back-to-back lecture demonstrations at 10:00 and at 2:00 but those aren’t so bad. All we have to do is set up the floor and sound; we don’t have to wear costumes or make-up. We do parts of a class and George tells the audience why we do each of the exercises. Then we usually do excerpts from Simple Gifts, Property, Pas de Trois and Tarantella. The next day we set-up at 11:00, had class at 2:00 and the show at 8:00. It was chaotic because the band was performing in our dressing rooms until 7:30 and there was a PTA meeting going on at the same time. The PTA had left their coats in the band room and we had them moved so they wouldn’t be looking for them when we were changing. But they came looking anyway because no one told them their coats had been moved. The man in charge said he figured once we had our costumes on, we wouldn’t need the dressing rooms anymore—right!

Webster City had a little reception after the performance where they served carrots and celery because someone had told them dancers only eat vegetables. They had a few brownies for the rest of the people but we devoured those instantly. By that time, most of us had decided that Iowa wasn’t that great a place. I guess the audience loved us though because they were already begging us to come back. We had one more show to do before we moved on. We had a school show the next morning at 10:00. We all hate early school shows with a passion. It means up by 6:00, made-up by 7:00, breakfast by 7:30, at the school by 8:00, warm-up 8:30 to 9:30, costumes and toe-shoes on by 10:00 (ouch). The show is an hour long and we are usually struck by noon. The kids weren’t especially nice kids either. Luckily we had the rest of the day off!

2/4 Creston, Iowa – One thing I can say about Creston, Iowa is that it made Webster City look good. The stage and dressing rooms were tiny. There was no one around to help us carry our equipment up two flights of stairs outside, through the house and over the pit to the stage. We stayed in a hotel where our room was so small we couldn’t pass each other anywhere in the room without one of us sitting on the bed. The hotel had an excellent smorgasbord, however, and a movie theatre next door. We ended up seeing “Car Wash”—a really funny movie. The audience for the performance was big and appreciative but rather uneducated. The local dance teacher came backstage after the performance to congratulate us. She was so excited because it was the first “real, live dancing” she had ever seen.

2/6 – We spent the whole day on the bus (roughly 600 miles). Most of the girls and George worked on crocheting, knitting projects or needlepoint. Over my many years at Ballet Folk, I made a number of items of which I am proud—a string-crocheted bedspread and tablecloth, a crocheted afghan and many needlepoint pillows. Mike always did crossword puzzles or read. I did my share of reading too—we had lots of time to kill. We arrived in Conway just in time to eat dinner before the restaurant closed at 10:00. The next day was the usual—set-up, class, rehearsal, make-up, warm-up, show, strike.

You are probably wondering what we’re rehearsing at this stage-in-the-game. Becky is leaving and we are trying to replace her in all the ballets. We have only two days in Moscow after the National tour before we leave for Anacortes, Washington. We have to put Chris in Requim and Overture, put Chris in Michelle’s spot in Property, put Michelle in Becky’s, put me in Simple Gifts pas de deux and put Pam in Becky’s parts in the rest. As you can imagine, it is going to be difficult. And we haven’t even started on Rainmaker. Conway was nice to us even if we did have to carry everything up two flights of stairs indoors. We decided Arkansas people are especially nice.

2/8 - Tarkio, Missouri – We left early the next day to drive the 600 miles back to Tarkio, Missouri—really poor planning. We got there pretty late but, luckily, one of the two restaurants in town was still open. Our motel, the Big T, had just enough rooms to accommodate us. The next day we set up at Tarkio College, Schechter Auditorium, which turned out to be a gym, and rehearsed the lecture demonstration to refresh our memory. George was sick with the flu and Mark and Terryl didn’t join us for the rehearsal, preferring to give themselves a class. Of course, that didn’t go over well with the rest of us. We performed the lecture demo that night and the audience was really nice. They didn’t expect us to be so good, and they all came and told us so afterward.

The next day we had a school show at 10:00 and I taught Modern at 2:00. I had absolutely no idea who I was teaching and it turned out to be college drama majors most of whom had never heard of Modern dance. It was fun though because they all thought I was just wonderful every time I demonstrated something. It was a big ego trip for me. It wasn’t as great when I had to teach the next morning at 9:15.

That evening we had our performance. You probably think we didn’t have to set-up because we were all set up for the school show, but no such luck. We had to take everything down and put it all back up again because the school needed the gym during the day. Boy was I mad. The performance went well except Barbara hurt her knee again. We had a reception afterward in what used to be the President’s house. The new President didn’t want to live there because of his two dogs, so they use the house for receptions. They served us cookies and punch although we were starving by that time and would have loved something more substantial. George, Chuck, Mike and I left early to get pizza at the only place in town that was still open. It was pretty bad. Someone who was taking pictures at the performance came and sat with us. He told us that if any of the pictures turn out, he will send them.

It seems like all the receptions come after Show III which ends with Requim. I am always filthy from those awful dyed black tights. I don’t think my heels will ever be the same. I did a little shopping in Tarkio –I bought a new pair of shoes for $10 marked down from $20. I also bought a pair of slacks for $6 that used to be $21. They were size 5 and I guess, like Terryl said, “No one is as small as that.”

2/12 – We drove to Kansas City and arrived about noon for our 3rd day off. We were pretty close to downtown so we went shopping with Jonny and Nancy. Mike found a neat pair of rust-colored jeans and a vest to match. You might think we’re spending an awful lot of money, but actually it is just saved per diem. We eat cheap for a few days and then can afford to blow a little on clothes. We all went to the movie together and saw “The Sentinel”. It was almost the worst movie I have ever seen. We agreed to go to that one because it was Nancy’s choice. Mike and I are often too agreeable but this might have taught us a lesson. There were seven movies to choose from at the theatre. We could have easily seen a different one and met them later. After the movie we went to an Italian restaurant and had lasagna. It was good but there was way too much and I felt bad wasting it.

2/13 – Fayette, Missouri. This was one of the places we had been on the last National tour. Barbara’s knee was really bad again—swollen so much she couldn’t even straighten it. The motel was too small to hold us all so Kelly, Chuck Pizarro and George had to stay in a guest house on campus. The next day, Valentine’s Day, we were supposed to show our Overture film but their camera was reel-to-reel and our film was a cassette. Unfortunately, they didn’t find this out until everyone was assembled and ready to watch. George had to ad-lib for an hour and then the audience was invited to ask us questions. We hurried over to the gym to give a lecture demo at 2:00. Barbara couldn’t dance so we had to replace her.

After we did the lecture demo, we rehearsed until 7:00 that night. Barbara had meanwhile gone to Columbia, Missouri, about 50 miles away to see a doctor. He gave her a cortisone shot and that whole night she was in agony. It was much better the following morning but we still had to replace her in Corelli, Property and we did Tarantella with two couples instead of three. She had to do Requim because no one else knows it and it would be hard to fix. The performance actually went really well—we had about 1,000 in the audience.

2/16 – We drove to Little Rock and stayed the night. By this time Nancy was driving us all crazy. All she does is complain about everything and constantly talk about how tired she is. She doesn’t even have to dance. I think she makes everyone realize how boring it is to hear someone complain, and so everyone else is extra careful not to do it.

2/17 – We drove to Monticello, Arkansas, on a gorgeous day. It was about 70 degrees, sunny and like spring. We got there about 2:00, ate and went to the college to set up and have class. The stage was also beautiful and so were the dressing rooms. We found out from our sponsor that the following night’s performance was completely sold out. They had even set up about 50 extra chairs in the front and along the side aisles. The sponsor and his wife invited us over after class for wine and cheese and told us there was to be a reception for us after the show. Everyone was so nice to us that we were happy the show went so well. We went to the reception, which was out in the country, and there was plenty of food, for once. Unfortunately Coke was the strongest drink that was served.

2/18 – We drove to Wichita Falls, Texas which took most of the day. 2/19 we had a day-off and the weather was hot and sunny. Mike, George, Chuck and I sat down by the pool most of the day and got a good start on our tans. Mine was even a little hard to cover up the next day. We performed the same show as we did in Toledo and the audience was very receptive although everyone complained about the lack of publicity.

2/22 – This was the day we were to drive to Kerrville to do a performance. We were scheduled to leave at about 7:00 in the morning but, right about that time, Barbara was beaten-up and raped in her motel room. Everyone was walking back and forth in front of her room but no one heard a thing. Barbara said the man had a knife so she didn’t want anyone to come to the door for fear he would do something rash. We were all in the bus waiting to go when Jonny came and told us Barb had been attacked and we wouldn’t be leaving for awhile.

A little earlier, Michelle and Pam had taken some of their things out to the bus and had seen a man go into the bus. Michelle waited by the bus while Pam went to tell someone. While Michelle was waiting, the man got off the bus and held his hands up as if to say he hadn’t taken anything. The girls think it was the same man. The police came and then an ambulance to take Barb to the hospital. The police said a rape had occurred just two days before at the motel next door and they thought it was a man that worked over there. They don’t think Barb will have to go back to testify.

Barb, Chuck Bonney and George got back from the hospital at about noon. By that time it was too late to drive the 400 miles to Kerrville, to set-up and perform. Barb couldn’t have performed anyway. George called Carl and Carl called Kerrville. Their Board met to decide whether to have us come to perform the next day. We were legally bound because an “Act of God” is the only thing that would let us out of our contract and this wasn’t that. Luckily the Board decided not to sue or force us to perform. We left for home at about 2:00 on 2/22.

We drove to Manitou Springs and got there at 3:30 a.m. I called Dad’s friend, Mike Hickman, the next morning but he was out-of-town. We left at 9:00 for Twin Falls but never made it because the generator went out around Little America, Wyoming. We spent the night there and then drove the next day 2/24 to Twin Falls with no heat. My toes have never been numb for so long. Right outside Twin Falls we had a flat tire so Becky and Kelly hitched into town so Becky could call her folks to come pick us up. The following day the bus was fixed by 4:00 and we drove back to Moscow arriving 2/26 at 2:00 a.m. What a trip!