Allen remained with the show until 1987, serving as choreographer, director and producer. When the movie became a television series, Allen developed the role of Lydia Grant more fully, bringing her international recognition, two Emmy Awards and one Golden Globe Award. In 1981, she made her film debut in Ragtime and then appeared in the movie Fame as dance teacher Lydia Grant. Then, in 1979, she played Anita in a Broadway revival of West Side Story, earning her a Drama Desk Award and a Tony Award nomination. Two years later, she played a principal role in Raisin, the musical adaptation of A Raisin in the Sun. In 1971, after graduating from Howard University with a concentration in theatre, she appeared on Broadway as a chorus member of Purlie. In 1964, Allen auditioned for the Houston Foundation for Ballet, where she was admitted on a full scholarship and became the company’s first black dancer. Debbie Allen was born in Houston, Texas and began her dance training by studying privately with a former dancer of the Ballet Russes and later danced with the Ballet Nacional de Mexico.
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