Yvonne Chouteau, who founded OU's dance program in 1963 with her husband, died Jan. 24 at age 86 following a long illness.
Chouteau was esteemed as a ballerina and dance teacher and was the youngest member of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, inducted at age 18. Chouteau and her husband also founded the Oklahoma City Civic Ballet, and she was known as one of the "Five Moons," five acclaimed Native American ballerinas from Oklahoma.
OU President David Boren issued the following statement regarding Chouteau's death:
"The university is saddened to learn of the death of one of America's
greatest ballerinas, Yvonne Chouteau. She and her husband, Miguel
Terekhov, founded the School of Dance at the University of Oklahoma,
which is still today one of the top ranked dance departments in the
United States. It was one of the first fully accredited dance
departments in the United States. She will be especially missed here at
the university. Having been inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame and
designated as an Oklahoma Treasure, she had an impact on the artistic
heritage of our entire state. She will be long remembered at the
university for her impact on the lives of those who were her students.
After a distinguished professional career she came back to Oklahoma to
make an enormous contribution here at home."
Public memorial services for Chouteau will be held Jan. 29 at 2 p.m. at St. Joseph Old Cathedral in Oklahoma City, and her family requests that donations be made to the Chouteau-Terekhov Scholarship Fund at the OU School of Dance in lieu of flowers.
