TBT: Lucia Chase, Who Was “Happy Simply to Be Able to Dance” But Became One of ABT’s Longest-Serving Directors
Lucia Chase was an original member of American Ballet Theatre, which grew out of Mikhail Mordkin’s troupe in the late 1930s and gave its first season, under the direction of Richard Pleasant, in 1940. Though she was often misidentified as ABT’s founder, Chase was quick to correct the assertion in interviews.