WOMEN WE LOVE: Debbie Allen

Debbie Allen is the epitome of a legend in the world of performing arts. From her days as a ballet student to founding a legendary dance academy, there isn’t anything in the world of entertainment that Debbie Allen hasn’t tackled yet.

Allen began her long dance career in Houston, where she received private training from a former Ballet Russes dancer. Later, going to dance with the Ballet Nacional de Mexico and later auditioning for the Houston Ballet School, she became the first African-American dancer for the company.

Debbie Allen faced a lot of adversity throughout her career as a dancer. At 16, she auditioned for the North Carolina School of the Arts, where she was used to demonstrating technique but unfortunately did not get accepted because her body type did not fit the traditional ballet norm. But that did not stop her from achieving her dreams of becoming a performer.

After graduating from Howard University, Debbie Allen appeared on Broadway as a chorus line member for Purlie and playing Anita in a revival of West Side Story, which earned her a Tony nomination. She then later went on to star in the original 1980 Fame movie as dance teacher Lydia Grant, and she was able to develop the character in the television series based on the movie, where she also served as director, producer, and choreographer.

Now, Debbie Allen is starring in, directing, and producing some of the biggest television series airing right now and even choreographed the Academy Awards twice. She plays Dr. Catherine Fox on “Grey’s Anatomy”, where she also serves as a producer and has directed multiple episodes of the medical drama.

In her latest project, Dance Dreams: Hot Chocolate Nutcracker takes us behind the scenes of the Debbie Allen Dance Academy she founded and their preparation for their version of The Nutcracker. The documentary also gives us a glimpse at Allen’s exceptional career and her inspiration behind founding the Debbie Allen Dance Academy and how she uses the power of dance to inspire children to find their purpose in life.

We love Debbie Allen because she pushed through despite the adversity she had faced. We’ll continue to love her for all the work she continues to do for the performing arts community through the Debbie Allen Dance Academy.