La Valera
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La Valera was a Spanish dancer of the early twentieth century.


Background

When she toured with her "Spanish Dance" her publicity claimed she was a famous Spanish dancer and singer who at the age of 15 was the premier danseuse at the
Teatro Real The Teatro Real () is an opera house in Madrid, Spain. Located at the Plaza de Oriente, opposite the Royal Palace, and known colloquially as "''El Real''" (The Royal One). it is considered the top institution of the performing and musical arts ...
in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
. More credible accounts indicate she was born Hazel Wolf to a traveling salesman and his wife and claimed Portland as her home town."Disturbance Created at Mother-in-Law's Causes Trouble for Husband of Beauty" (November 8, 1911) ''Oakland Tribune'' Accounts of her divorce give her married name as Mrs. Hazel Gertrude Phipps, daughter of Mrs. Marie Dowd. Phipps married her when she was a student at St. Margaret's, San Mateo. She reportedly "returned" to Spain as a teenager.


Exotic Dancer

She relocated to
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
and by 1909 had signed to tour on the Orpheum Circuit, Inc. In a
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
engagement La Valera presented a '' Kirmess'' dance during a production of ''Cupid At Home'', at the Orpheum Theater. Often she imitated Rita Sacchetto, a German-born Spanish dancer.''Putnam's Monthly'' Vol. 7 (1910) Some of the dances she performed were originated by Carmencita. Others were taken from peasant dances. As ''Rita'', La Valera performed a toreador dance, draped in a large black cape. She depicted the fear of the
bullfight Bullfighting is a physical contest that involves a bullfighter attempting to subdue, immobilize, or kill a bull, usually according to a set of rules, guidelines, or cultural expectations. There are several variations, including some forms wh ...
and the danger faced by the torero precisely. Her attire was black and gold like the jewelry of
Toledo, Spain Toledo ( ; ) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality of Spain, the capital of the province of Toledo and the ''de jure'' seat of the government and parliament of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castilla†...
. She designed all of her own costumes. She performed at the American Music Hall in
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in May 1910. In 1914 she appeared at the Colonial Theater owned by
Benjamin Franklin Keith Benjamin Franklin Keith (January 26, 1846 – March 26, 1914) was an American vaudeville theater owner, who played an important role in the evolution of variety theater into vaudeville. Biography Early years Keith was born in Hillsboro Br ...
. In this New York show she was paired with Melvin Stokes in ''A Dash of Spanish''.
Will Rogers William Penn Adair Rogers (November 4, 1879 â€“ August 15, 1935) was an American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorous social commentator. He was born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in the Indian Territory (now part of Oklahoma ...
, ''the
Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...
cowboy'', was also on the bill. In June 1915 La Valera joined the ''Mission Play'' performers who gave presentations at the
Pasadena Playhouse Pasadena Playhouse is a Tony Award-winning historic performing arts venue located 39 S. El Molino Avenue in Pasadena, California. The 686-seat auditorium produces a variety of cultural and artistic events, professional shows, and community engag ...
. In September of the same year she introduced a new dance called the ''El Pandoro'' at
San Gabriel, California San Gabriel (Spanish language, Spanish for "Gabriel, St. Gabriel") is a city located in the San Gabriel Valley of Los Angeles County, California. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 39,568. San Gabriel was founded ...
. She learned it from ''La Belle'' Ortega, a legendary Spanish dancer who was retired.


Marriage

La Valera's husband, Horton Forrest Phipps, became a taxi driver shortly before she began her vaudeville touring. He was soon arrested on a charge of
grand larceny Larceny is a crime involving the unlawful taking or theft of the personal property of another person or business. It was an offence under the common law of England and became an offence in jurisdictions which incorporated the common law of Eng ...
, but was acquitted. La Valera divorced him afterwards. Phipps' checkered career was further tarnished by his employment as a runner by a firm of police court attorneys. Through his employment he violated a San Francisco statute which read, "every person who acts as a runner or capper for attorneys in or about police courts is a vagrant and is punishable by a fine of $500 and imprisonment not to exceed six months." In 1919 she married Army Colonel Hugh Cochran. "La Valera" retired around this time. Being an Army couple, they lived in many places: The Philippines, Hawaii, New York, Virginia, Texas and eventually California. They had four children: Hazel, Nancy, Hugh and Donald. The Cochrans settled in Palo Alto, California and later in nearby Atherton, California. Colonel Hugh Cochran died and Mrs. Hazel Cochran died in 1973.


References


Sources

* "The Drama-Players, Playhouses, Theatrical Chit-Chat", (May 30, 1909), ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'', Page III1. * "Personifies Spanish dance mood", (June 7, 1915), ''Los Angeles Times'', Page III4. * "Mission Play", (September 7, 1915), ''Los Angeles Times'', Page II6. *"Spanish Dancing", (May 1, 1910), ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', Page XX3. *"Week's Bills At The Theatres", (May 24, 1910), ''New York Times'', Page 9. *"For Vaudeville's Patrons", (January 11, 1914), ''New York Times'', Page X6. *"The Knave", (December 6, 1914), ''
Oakland Tribune The ''Oakland Tribune'' was a daily newspaper published in Oakland, California, and a predecessor of the '' East Bay Times''. It was published by the Bay Area News Group (BANG), a subsidiary of MediaNews Group. Founded in 1874, the ''Tribune'' ...
'', Page 25. *"Is It Press Agent Work", (November 11, 1911), ''Oakland Tribune'', Page 9. *"Mrs. Phipps (La Valera) Plans Suit for Divorce", (January 19, 1912), ''Oakland Tribune'', Page 13. {{DEFAULTSORT:Valera, La Spanish female dancers 20th-century Spanish dancers Spanish vaudeville performers Year of birth missing Year of death missing