Adriana Miller papers
Collection Scope and Content
The Adriana Miller Collection consists of administrative files, photographs, phonographs audio cassettes and video cassettes all related to the career of Adriana Miller as a dancer, entertainer, and teacher. The collection dates from 1950-2010 and is part of the Dance Archives of the Greater Washington Region. The Archives was established in 1993 by Nancy Diers Johnson, Ed.D., Associate Professor of Dance, and the Gelman Library of The George Washington University. The Dance Archives of the Greater Washington Region collects, preserves and makes accessible the documentary heritage of all forms and types of dance.
Dates
- 1950-2010
Creator
- Miller, Adriana (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Restrictions on Use
Some material may be copyrighted or restricted. It is the patron's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other case restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in the collections.
Historical or Biographical Note
Adriana Miller was born in Boston, Massachusetts in the midst of the Great Depression. She studied dance at the Boston Conservatory of Music and continued her studies at the Stanley Brown Dance Studios. In 1972, Adriana opened her own school in Washington, D.C., called Adriana's Mecca of Middle Eastern Dance, where she taught dance, make-up, and skin care, as well as costume construction, and music theory classes. She also had her own troop of dancers called Adriana's Mecca of Middle Eastern Dancers. In 1979, she was recognized at the Kennedy Center for her talents and achievements. She closed her school in 1982 and retired.
Adriana returned to the dance scene in 1990. In 1992, she presented her first Middle Eastern and Mediterranean Danse Orietale Gala Review and Reunion. The following year she was inducted into the American Academy of Middle Eastern Dance Hall of Fame. In 1997, the documentary Adriana: Shadows on Yellow Silk premiered at the Mary Pickford Theater at the Library of Congress. The film chronicles Adriana's rise to fame and the role she played in the renaissance of Middle Eastern dance in Washington, D.C., as well as her personal struggles, retirement, and return to the dance scene.
Extent
8.75 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Collection consists of administrative files, photographs, audio cassettes and video cassettes all related to the career of Adriana Miller as a dancer, entertainer, and teacher. The collection dates from 1950-2010.
Collection Organization
Arranged in four series: Administrative files, Photographs, Audio and visual materials, Phonographs.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Adriana Miller, 1998 donaton and also November 11, 2014 (2014.041).
- Adriana's Mecca of Middle Eastern Dance (Washington, D.C.)
- Audiotapes Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Dance Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Dance schools Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Dancers Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Miller, Adriana
- Photographs Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Videotapes Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Washington (D.C.) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Title
- Guide to the Adriana Miller papers, 1950-2010
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Special Collections Research Center, The George Washington University
- Date
- 2005
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English
Repository Details
Part of the Special Collections Research Center, The George Washington University Repository
