Honoring Juanita Boyle (1939-2019)
Juanita Boyle, far left foreground on stage at the Latin Quarter, NYC, circa 1960s (Courtesy F.M. Storey. Image subject to copyright)
Beloved Latin Quarter dancer, Juanita Boyle, passed away peacefully in her sleep on April 24th, 2019 at The Upper East Side Rehabilitation Center in Manhattan, following a short illness.
Juanita attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. She went on to perform at Lou Walters’ World Famous Latin Quarter, the legendary Copacabana and Jack Silverman’s International Theatre and Restaurant.
Her long and successful dance career included national companies of Sweet Charity and Carnival! and summer stock appearances in the Guber, Ford and Gross productions of Carnival! and The King and I, as well as a stint with Minsky’s Follies at the famed Edgewater Beach Hotel in Chicago.
Juanita Boyle, circa 1980s/’90s (Courtesy F.M. Storey. Image subject to copyright)
After retiring from dance, Juanita focused her talents and beauty on the business world as Director of both the John Robert Powers and Barbizon modeling schools. Later she became an award-winning Sales Representative for the New York Daily News in their advertising department.
Between all these activities, she continued to share her skill and passion for dance. Juanita taught Creative Pre-School Ballet and Jazz at the Montclair Academy of Dance owned by fellow Copacabana Showgirl, Judy Alexander.
Montclair Academy of Dance. Juanita second in from left, circa 1980s. (Courtesy F.M. Storey. Image subject to copyright)
Juanita lived happily throughout retirement, attending dance and theatre performances and visiting with loved ones. She is survived by many grieving family and friends.
On January 4th, 2019, Juanita participated in a John Hemmer & the Showgirls documentary post-screening panel at SAGE in New York City with fellow Latin Quarter performers. Watch the recording below.
About the Author
Francine M. Storey
FRANCINE M. STOREY: DANCER-WRITER was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She began dancing at an early age and performed professionally with the Long Beach Civic Light Opera, the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera, the Saida Gerrard Modern Dance Company, “An American in Paris” at the Hollywood Bowl and Ballet La Jeunesse. At age 21, she moved to NYC to continue her career. She appeared in “To Broadway With Love” at the 1964 World’s Fair and in the Broadway Shows, “Bajour, Mata Hari and Cabaret.” Other dance jobs included “Arabian Nights” at Jones Beach, Minsky’s, and stints at both the Latin Quarter and the Copacabana Nightclubs. At age 32, she began to write. Subsequently, her Verse-Drama “The Barbed Wire Cradle” was produced at the Cubiculo Theatre. She won the “Dylan Thomas Poetry Prize” in 1980 from The New School for her poem “Instructions for Search” which was then filmed by Jerome Hamlin of “Third Wave Media” and premiered at the Explorers Club. Her poetry has been published by “The Journal of Irish Literature, The Irish Times, The Max Plank Institute, and Africa Geographic” among others. She had monologues published in the 3 volumes of “By Actors, For Actors” and Inspirational stories published in the “Chocolate Series” by Simon and Schuster. She lives in NYC near Times Square.
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