Desiree Lubovska (June 21, 1893 — 1974), also seen as Desiree Lubowska, was the professional name of American dancer Winniefred Foote.
Early life Winniefred Foote was born in Faribault, Minnesota. She changed her name, adopted an accent in her speech,"Girl Dancer Who Posed as Russian to Gain Fame, in Tampa for Ballet Recruits" Tampa Tribune (April 27, 1926): 13. via Newspapers.com and created a backstory of dancing in Russia; she also said that she studied Egyptian art at the British Museum and became convinced that "angles, sharp corners, such as we find on the ancient tablets of Egypt, where lovely Egyptian women of the early day are portrayed, are only beautiful." She went on a diet and fitness regimen in pursuit of a more angular physique, and her dances reflect this focus. "I finally felt I was one of them, a reincarnated spirit of the Nile."Helen Hoffman, "Society Now on its Toes" South Bend News-Times (April 20, 1921): 12. via Hoosier State Chronicles
Career Lubovska started the short-lived but ambitious"Dancer Leads Movement for National Ballet" Houston Post (July 10, 1921): 31. via Newspapers.com National American Ballet company in 1921."Want American Ballet" The New York Times (February 26, 1921): 10."Mme. Lubovska to Found a National Ballet to Train Dancers" Musical America (February 19, 1921): 2. The national ballet program was housed on a farm in Hightstown, New Jersey.Hannah Mitchell, "Social Leaders Back Plan for American Ballet School" New-York Tribune (February 20, 1921): 68. via Newspapers.com The school was later relocated to Arlington, Virginia, with her mother Blanche E. Foote as the school's business manager."American Ballet Trains in South; to Tour Country" Arizona Daily Star (September 6, 1925): 7. via Newspapers.com
In 1918 Lubovska appeared as "Night" in the "musical spectacle" Everything with music by Irving Berlin and Philip Sousa, at the Hippodrome in New York."Hippodrome" Theatre Magazine (October 1918): 212. Also at the Hippodrome, in 1920, she danced at a benefit for the Serbian Child Welfare Association."Serbian Child Aid Party" The New York Times (May 31, 1920): 10. In 1921, Lubovka sued V. Vivaudou, an American talcum powder manufacturer, for using an image of her "in scant attire" in a newspaper advertisement."Trade Notes" American Perfumer (August 1921): 256."Dancer Sues for 100,000" New-York Tribune (August 2, 1921): 5. via Newspapers.com That year, she danced at the International Silk Exposition in New York, embodying "The Spirit of Silk", beginning with a burst from a cocoon."'Silk Week' Climax of Show" Textile World (January 29, 1921): 25. Also in 1921 she danced at meetings of the National Garment Retailers' Association"The Spring Fashion Fete at the Hotel Commodore" American Cloak and Suit Review (February 1921): 145–146. and the New York League of Advertising Women, performing at the latter "a satire on modes and manners.""New York Ad Women Hold Brilliant Ball" Editor and Publisher (March 19, 1921): 14. In 1922 she was touring in South America."Lubovska, Dancer, Wins Plaudits" The New York Times (May 14, 1922): 26.
She appears in the silent film Greater Than Fame (1920).
Personal life Desiree Lubovska had a son, Joseph Willard Schutz, born in 1912.Bill Thayer, "Names from the Past". She died in 1974, aged 80 years.
References
External links
Desiree Lubovska, "The Public and the Artist" Theatre Magazine (November 1918): 294. A 1924 photograph of Desiree Lubovska wearing a Lanvin gown, by Edward Steichen for Vogue, at Getty Images. Another 1924 photograph of Desiree Lubovska, wearing a gown by Bendel, by Edward Steichen for Vogue, at Conde Nast.