# Diana Adams

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{{Short description|American ballerina and ballet teacher (1926–1993)}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Diana Adams
| image              = Diana Adams (1948).jpg
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| birth_date         = March 29, 1926
| birth_place        = [Staunton, Virginia](/source/Staunton%2C_Virginia), US
| death_date         = January 10, 1993 (aged 66)
| death_place        = [San Andreas, California](/source/San_Andreas%2C_California), US
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| occupation         = ballerina, teacher
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}}
'''Diana Adams''' (March 29, 1926 – January 10, 1993) was a principal dancer for the [New York City Ballet](/source/New_York_City_Ballet) from 1950 to 1963 and favorite of [George Balanchine](/source/George_Balanchine), later becoming a teacher at — and dean of — the [School of American Ballet](/source/School_of_American_Ballet).

Adams was born in [Staunton, Virginia](/source/Staunton%2C_Virginia) and died in [San Andreas, California](/source/San_Andreas%2C_California),<ref name=gale>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Adams, Diana (1927–1993)|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G2-2591300088.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220082440/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G2-2591300088.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=20 December 2016|encyclopedia=Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia|publisher=Gale Research Inc.|accessdate=8 January 2013}}{{subscription required}}</ref> though she lived in [Arnold, California](/source/Arnold%2C_California).<ref name=":0">[https://www.nytimes.com/1993/01/13/obituaries/diana-adams-leading-ballerina-and-dance-educator-dies-at-66.html Diana Adams, Leading Ballerina And Dance Educator, Dies at 66 - NYTimes.com] Retrieved 2016-11-19.</ref> Adams was married to [Hugh Laing](/source/Hugh_Laing) from 1947 to 1953.<ref name=":0" />  She later married [Ronald Bates](/source/Ronald_Bates).  Adams had one child, Georgina Bates.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-01-15-mn-1139-story.html|title=Diana Adams; Ballerina Starred for Balanchine, De Mille|date=1993-01-15|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-19}}</ref>

Diana Adams was one of George Balanchine's "muses" at New York City Ballet and he created roles for her in a series of ballets: ''[Western Symphony](/source/Western_Symphony), [Ivesiana](/source/Ivesiana), Divertimento #15, [Agon](/source/Agon_(ballet)), [Stars and Stripes](/source/Stars_and_Stripes_(ballet)), [Episodes](/source/Episodes_(ballet)), [Monumentum Pro Gesualdo](/source/Monumentum_pro_Gesualdo),'' and ''[Liebeslieder Walzer](/source/Liebeslieder_Walzer_(ballet))''.  According to Jacques D'Amboise's memoirs, Balanchine also created roles on her in ''Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, Figure in the Carpet, [Midsummer Night's Dream](/source/A_Midsummer_Night's_Dream_(ballet)),'' and ''[Movements for Piano and Orchestra](/source/Movements_for_Piano_and_Orchestra_(ballet))'', although she did not dance in the premieres due to illness or injury.

== Filmography ==

* ''[Knock on Wood](/source/Knock_on_Wood_(film))'' (1954)
* ''[Invitation to the Dance](/source/Invitation_to_the_Dance_(film))'' (1956)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|id=0010909}}
*[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Gq68pHzyfw4  A scene from Invitation to Dance] at [YouTube](/source/YouTube), Adams dancing with [Irving Davies](/source/Irving_Davies)

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Diana}}
Category:1926 births
Category:1993 deaths
Category:People from Staunton, Virginia
Category:American prima ballerinas
Category:New York City Ballet dancers
Category:American ballet teachers
Category:People from Calaveras County, California
Category:Dancers from California
Category:Dancers from Virginia
Category:20th-century American women

{{US-entertainer-stub}}
{{ballet-bio-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Diana Adams](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diana_Adams) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diana_Adams?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.