Edward Myers (1951 - February 1, 1993)

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Edward Myers, for 14 years a much admired dancer with the Pennsylvania Ballet, died on February 1, 1993, at Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville, Tenn., of an HIV-related illness.

Myers, 42, had been artistic director of the Nashville Ballet since 1991 and was active until his death, overseeing that company's recent production of ''The Nutcracker" and attending the post-production cast party. He entered the hospital on Saturday, Jan. 30, with a high fever.

A native of Maryland, Myers joined the Pennsylvania Ballet in 1974, after performing with the Washington Ballet for five years.

When he retired from the company in 1988 at age 37, he had achieved ballet's top performing rank, principal dancer, and was a favorite with local audiences.

He loved the Pennsylvania Ballet and thought of it as his "family."

Although he often said that his only goal in getting into ballet had been ''to become the prince," it was his talent as a character actor that made his dancing unique.

His portrayal of Herr Drosselmeyer the mysterious host of "The Nutcracker" and Madge, the delicious witch in "La Sylphide," were two roles so associated with him that he continued to perform them after his retirement.


AIDS Quilt

Myers became a real estate agent with Fox and Lazo, working in the Broad Street office, when his performing career ended.

But in 1991, he took on the responsibilities at the Nashville Ballet. Jane Fabian, acting managing director, said by telephone, that "If you knew Eddy, you knew what a special person he was. He made a real difference to us in the company and the school.

"Eddy had a real esthetic sense and always wanted us to be a little bit better."

Source: http://articles.philly.com/1993-02-03/news/25955999_1_pennsylvania-ballet-nashville-ballet-washington-ballet

Further Readings:

Beyond Shame: Reclaiming the Abandoned History of Radical Gay Sexuality by Patrick Moore
Paperback: 264 pages
Publisher: Beacon Press (January 14, 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 080707957X
ISBN-13: 978-0807079577
Amazon: Beyond Shame: Reclaiming the Abandoned History of Radical Gay Sexuality

The radical sexuality of gay American men in the 1970s is often seen as a shameful period of excess that led to the AIDS crisis. Beyond Shame claims that when the gay community divorced itself from this allegedly tainted legacy, the tragic result was an intergenerational disconnect because the original participants were unable to pass on a sense of pride and identity to younger generations. Indeed, one reason for the current rise in HIV, Moore argues, is precisely due to this destructive occurrence, which increased the willingness of younger gay men to engage in unsafe sex.

Lifting the'veil of AIDS,' Moore recasts the gay male sexual culture of the 1970s as both groundbreaking and creative-provocatively comparing extreme sex to art. He presents a powerful yet nuanced snapshot of a maligned, forgotten era. Moore rescues gay America's past, present, and future from a disturbing spiral of destruction and AIDS-related shame, illustrating why it's critical for the gay community to reclaim the decade.

More LGBT History at my website: www.elisarolle.com/, My Ramblings/Gay Classics