From the archives: Pioneering dancer and choreographer Carmen de Lavallade

Dancer, choreographer, actress and teacher Carmen de Lavallade, one of the pioneers of American modern dance, and the first prima ballerina of Creole descent to perform at New York’s Metropolitan Opera, died on Dec. 29, 2025 at age 94. In this Dec. 3, 2017 “Sunday Morning” report, de Lavallade talked with Rita Braver about her artistic journey (including her collaborations with Alvin Ailey and future husband Geoffrey Holder), and her decision to boycott a 2017 Kennedy Center Honorees reception following President Trump’s remarks about White nationalists who marched in Charlottesville, Va.