Teresa Mann

Teresa Mann (2 September 1934 in Panama City, Panama – 6 July 2017) was a Panamanian ballerina, ballet teacher and dance pioneer. She was a founding member of the Ballet Nacional de Panama and its lead dancer until 1983. She was also the founding director of the Escuela de Danzas Teresa Mann and the Ballet de Teresa Mann in Panama. Her mother was a Panamanian, Rosaura de Obarrio, daughter of engineer, Alberto de Obarrio. While there, she studied ballet with Sybil Marion and Guillermo Del Oro, and danced with various companies in Europe.

National Ballet of Panama (1963–83) Mann returned to Panama in 1963 and was instrumental in the formation of the first ballet company in the country in 1972, the Ballet Nacional de Panama. Mann was lead dancer (prima ballerina) for the National Ballet until 1983 when she left the company to focus on her Escuela de Danzas Teresa Mann and Ballet de Teresa Mann, which she founded in 1965 and 1975, respectively. from the National Ballet of Canada, to come to Panama as a guest artist. In Panama, Mann also danced with Armando Villamil, Alejandro Lugo, Andres Nieto and most notably, with Julio Araúz.

Her notable mentions with the National Ballet include: Black Swan, Grand Pas Classique, Grand Pas de Deux from the Nutcracker, Le Corsaire, Les Sylphides, Pas de Quatre, The Dying Swan, Nikiya in La Bayadère, Nymph in Walpurgis Nights, El Diablo in La Flor del Diablo, and Pena y Consuelo, Romance and Titania in Midsummer Night's Dream. On that occasion Mann shared her philosophy of life: "Even though the world is so fast-paced, we have to forget that phrase, as I did: "I can't". That word does not exist in my vocabulary." Teresa Mann died in Panama City on July 6, 2017.

Legacy Thousands of Panamanian women have studied ballet under Teresa Mann and have danced at her school since 1965. Most of the owners of other dance schools in Panama today are graduates of the Escuela de Danzas Teresa Mann (EDTM).