Allegra Kent

Allegra Kent, born Iris Margo Cohen on August 11, 1937, in Santa Monica, California, is an American ballet dancer, actress, children's author, and columnist. She was born to Jewish parents Harry Herschel and Shirley (née Weissman) Cohen and later adopted the name Allegra Kent. Her father, whom she described in her autobiography as having "a gambler's soul and a restless nature," was Texan. Her mother, born in Wisznice, began teaching ballroom dancing at night by the age of fourteen.

Kent grew up in Los Angeles, California, and first discovered music and dance at age seven. She did not begin formal ballet training until age eleven, having previously consulted a doctor about her completely flat feet, who prescribed arch supports before she commenced lessons. She went on to study with Bronislava Nijinska and Carmelita Maracci before enrolling at the School of American Ballet.

Upon graduating, Kent joined the New York City Ballet in 1953 at the age of fifteen and was promoted to principal dancer in 1957. George Balanchine created several roles specifically for her, including parts in Seven Deadly Sins, Ivesiana, and Bugaku. She also performed in Serenade, Agon, and Dances at a Gathering. In 1958, she danced the role of Dewdrop in the Playhouse 90 television broadcast of Balanchine's production of The Nutcracker.

In 1957, Kent appeared on Broadway in Shinbone Alley. She retired from performing in 1981 and subsequently became a ballet teacher. In 1997, she published her autobiography, Once a Dancer, through St. Martin's Press. In 2012, she published her first children's book, Ballerina Swan, with Holiday House Books for Young People, illustrated by Caldecott Medalist Emily Arnold McCully. The book received reviews from The New York Times, Kirkus Reviews, and School Library Journal. In 2013, the New York City Children's Theater adapted Ballerina Swan as a stage dance piece, with choreography by Michael McGowan and direction by artistic director Barbara Zinn Krieger. New York City Children's Theater produced a revival of the adaptation in December 2015. Kent teaches ballet at Barnard College.