Eva Powers, the Interim Chair of the Maggie Allesee Department of Dance at Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan informed the CCA executive Board members that the University is honoring the work and life of Rose Marie Floyd by establishing an endowed Chair in Ballet in her name. Ms. Powers wrote the following words to describe the success of Rose Marie:
There are always those very special teachers who have an impact on their students’ lives providing life lessons beyond the subject at hand. Rose Marie Floyd is one of those very special teachers. Rose Marie Floyd founded her non-profit dance company, the Contemporary Civic Ballet Company, in Royal Oak, Michigan in 1956 to further the professional training she was providing in her private dance studio, the Rose Marie Floyd School of Dance. In her studio, young aspiring dancers literally grew up, not just learning the tools of dance, but learning about music, art, theater, manners, how and when to do homework, and why it was not nice to talk back to your parents. Many of Rose Marie’s students have gone on to perform in major companies, including the Joffrey Ballet, Netherlands Dance Co., Houston Ballet, Cleveland Ballet, the Martha Graham and numerous other modern dance companies and Broadway musicals.
The name Rose Marie Floyd is recognized internationally as an expert in the classical Cecchetti style of ballet. A graduate of Wayne State University, Rose Marie holds the Final Maestro Cecchetti Diploma, the most advanced honor in the Cecchetti society. She has received awards and accolades for her work in ballet, most recently the Dance Teacher of the Year Award from Dance Teacher Magazine in the Private Studio and Conservatory category, the WSU Arts Achievement Award and the WSU Ovation Award for Lifetime Achievement.
A reception was held at Wayne State’s Bonstell Theater on March 11 to kick-off the campaign to raise the $750,000.00 needed to establish the endowed Chair in Ballet in Rose Marie’s name. If you would like to make a donation to the Rose Marie Floyd Endowed Fund in Support of Ballet, send your gift to Wayne State University Fund Office, 5475 Woodward, Detroit, MI 48202.
For more information, contact Eva Powers, Interim Chair, Maggie Allesee Department of Dance, 3226 Old Main Building, 4841 Cass Avenue, Detroit, MI, 48202 or call 313-577-4273.