Catherine Littlefield
| Catherine Littlefield | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1908 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Died | 1951 |
| Residence | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Occupation |
Ballerina, Choreographer, Artistic Director |
| Spouse(s) | Philip Ludwell Leidy (1933–1947), Sterling Noel (1948-1951) |
| Parent(s) | James and Caroline Littlefield |
Catherine Littlefield (1908 — 1951) was an American ballerina, choreographer, and artistic director. At the age of 27, she founded the famous American ballet school, The Littlefield Ballet (later known as the Philadelphia Ballet) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1935. It was the first American ballet company to achieve fame at both the national and international level. Littlefield’s establishment was the first American ballet company to tour in Europe and produce the first evening-length (or three-act) edition of the musical The Sleeping Beauty. Littlefield was also known for her production, “My Bicycle Girl” as a part of the American Jubilee spectacle at the New York World’s Fair of 1940. In 1987, Littlefield became one of the first inductees into the National Museum of Dance’s Hall of Fame.
Catherine Littlefield was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1908. Catherine was the oldest of three siblings: Jimmy, Dorothie, and Carl. Her father, James Littlefield, was a newsreel pioneer and her mother, Caroline Littlefield was a concert pianist. Her mother also opened a dance school after gaining dance experience at the Philadelphia Civic Opera Company by “walking on” in opera ballets. Caroline trained with the traditional European ballet master, Romulus Carpenter, and began landing actual roles and solos in ballets. The dance school that Caroline started was originally for recreational classes of a local women’s club. Caroline could not hire a professional to instruct the classes, so she became the teacher. The school grew and began training dancers for the Philadelphia Civic Opera Company.
Catherine began training in her mother’s studio at the age of three. As she grew older, she worked with a variety of remarkable teachers of the time. When Catherine was a teenager, she danced in Philadelphia Junior League’s presentation of Why Not, directed by her mother, Caroline Littlefield. The Broadway impresario, Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr., provided the costumes for the show and stayed to watch the production. Impressed by Littlefield, Ziegfeld brought Catherine to New York and gave her a role in the Broadway production, Sally, in December 1920.
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