Felisa Vanoff

Felisa Vanoff (born Phyllis Elizabeth Caputo; June 11, 1925 – May 29, 2014) was an American dancer, choreographer, producer, and philanthropist.

Early life and education Phyllis Elizabeth Caputo was born on June 11, 1925, in Ambridge, Pennsylvania. Her father, Eugene Caputo, was a Pennsylvania State Representative, and her mother, Velma Lindway, was an artist.

Shortly after she graduated from high school, she moved from Pennsylvania to Manhattan. There she lived at a boarding house and studied with Vincenzo Celli of the Ballet Russe. The following year, she joined the New York City Opera as a lead dancer, appearing in productions like Carmen and Don Giovanni; she was also the company's assistant choreographer. With her husband, Nick Vanoff, she also choreographed numerous Kennedy Center Honors shows. Vanoff later worked with Gordon Davidson to set up an annual charity dinner known as Salon at the Taper, Additionally, she served on the Board of Directors of Colleagues, She also donated to the St Luke's Wood River Medical Center in Ketchum, Idaho.

Vanoff was a donor to the Sun Valley Summer Symphony, a summer festival in Sun Valley, Idaho. She was also a "Bronze Sponsor" of the National Gay and Lesbian Taskforce.

Personal She met her husband, Nick Vanoff (1929-1991), when both were dancers in the New York City Opera in the 1950s. They had two sons, Nicholas Jr. and Flavio. The Vanoff Black Box Theater at the Brooks School, a private boarding school in North Andover, Massachusetts from which their son Nicholas Jr. graduated in 1980, is named after her and her husband.

Death She died of cancer on May 29, 2014, at her private residence in Beverly Hills at the age of eighty-nine. She was buried in Sun Valley, Idaho, her favorite winter skiing resort.