Research shows story of Glen Ellyn's 'golden age'

Glen Ellyn resident William Slavin recently completed a labor of love, a written history of what he calls Glen Ellyn's "golden age."

From 1927 to 1962, the village hosted a succession of notable dance and music instructors and, collectively, the community supported them by embracing the arts.

"They were almost miraculously good teachers. They were all financially successful," Slavin said.

His manuscript, "The Golden Age of Ballet Instruction in Glen Ellyn, Illinois: 1927-1962," a work more than five years in the making, has been accepted into the archives of some of the most notable and prestigious libraries in the country, including the New York Public Library, Newberry Library, The Harold Washington Chicago Public Library, The Chicago Historical Society Library and the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., where it likely will be used as a research tool.

But for the typical reader, it provides a glimpse into the past, a snapshot of Glen Ellyn as a gathering place of sorts for the cultural arts. Although the residents were largely of modest means, they wanted the best things in life for their children. There was an emphasis on music and dance.

"People who lived here were looking for the finer things in life," Slavin said. "These finer things were aesthetic beauty. They were not going to let it get by - for themselves or their children."

The village grew and drew some extraordinary talent, who often stayed on to teach their craft. Slavin's history features a cast of characters that range from the famous to the mysterious.

Katherine Dunham, one of the most influential dancers and choreographers of 20th century American dance, was born in Glen Ellyn in 1909. Her protégés included Marlon Brando, James Dean and Eartha Kitt.

Edna May Wheaton, a beauty queen and a former Ziegfeld Follies star with a checkered past, opened a hugely popular dance studio in Glen Ellyn in March 1931, then abruptly vanished in 1938. Although she arrived with an illegitimate child in tow, she was accepted by the community and operated the successful dance studio until her sudden and unexplained departure.

In the late '30s and into the mid-'40s, dance instructors Richard Maximoff and his teaching assistant, Madame Dobrovinskaya, opened a dance studio, with Maximoff purchasing his own property for the studio at 479 Pennsylvania Ave.

One of their pupils, Janice Rule, went on to star on Broadway.

After 10 years of success in Glen Ellyn, Maximoff, too, abruptly left for Los Angeles, leaving behind only speculation as to why.

Slavin paints a picture of a village that, despite economic ups and downs, managed to employ three full-time piano tuners, was the location of two retail piano stores, and where local newspapers often made cultural events front-page news. Restaurants included music and dancing with dinner. Club meetings often featured a singer or performer of classical music along with the business at hand.

Children were tutored in classical music and were encouraged to learn to play a variety of instruments, along with classes in dance, art, drama and literature. There were musician clubs, drama clubs, literature clubs and dance clubs.

Slavin's meticulously researched history began almost by happenstance five years ago while Slavin was coordinating a flyer for a reunion of some classmates.

"In pursuing it, I started interviewing people. I started going back to the newspaper records about Glen Ellyn. It is almost as if they (these teachers) called to me and said, 'Tell our stories!'" he said.

As he got further into the project, he began to realize the complexity of the task.

"The story ended up being far more important than I had imagined," he said.

" I interrupted another project before I started this," he said. "This story came my way. It was more than just a labor of love."

For Slavin, a translator and interpreter and a professor of foreign language at College of DuPage, part of the motivation for writing this history was assigning credit where credit was due. These talented individuals contributed so much.

"They're not to be forgotten," he said.

Slavin's manuscript, "The Golden Age of Ballet Instruction in Glen Ellyn, Illinois: 1927-1962," is available at the Glen Ellyn Public Library, 400 Duane St., and at the Wheaton Public Library, 225 N. Cross St.