A balletic pioneer

Producers honor Maria TallchiefMaria Tallchief Paschen, Osage, was honored along with five other luminaries of the production world, a few known for their work on and off the set, at the Producers Guild of America's "Celebration of Diversity" awards in May.

According to the PGS's written bio on Tallchief, when she retired as a dancer in 1965, she passed on her love and valuable knowledge of ballet to young dancers. She became the artistic director and instructor of the Chicago Lyric Opera Ballet in 1975, and from 1981--'87 she served as the founder and artistic director of the Chicago City Ballet.