Full Text of SR0292 101st General Assembly
SR0292 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to | 3 | | learn of the death of Dame
Libby Komaiko, professor emeritus of | 4 | | Northeastern Illinois University and founder of the Ensemble
| 5 | | Espanol Spanish Dance and Theater, who passed away on February | 6 | | 2, 2019 at Chicago's Illinois
Masonic Hospital at the age of | 7 | | 69; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, Dame Libby, a native of Evanston, was born in 1949 | 9 | | to parents who were
both musicians; she earned her bachelor's | 10 | | degree in the nontraditional degree program at
Northeastern | 11 | | Illinois University in 1978; in 1975, she founded the Ensemble | 12 | | Espanol
Spanish Dance Theater and built an arts residency | 13 | | program with Northeastern Illinois
University, forming the | 14 | | premier Spanish dance and music center in the United States; | 15 | | incorporated in 1976, she then led the fledgling company of | 16 | | seven dancers through
decades of growth, change, and exciting | 17 | | opportunities; today, the company is a critically acclaimed
| 18 | | performance ensemble that tours national and internationally | 19 | | and provides
educational outreach that spans kindergarten to | 20 | | college-level students; for nearly 40
years, the company has | 21 | | continued its mission to present, promote, and preserve the | 22 | | Flamenco,
folkloric, classical, and contemporary dance and | 23 | | music traditions of Spain; Dame Libby is
recognized as one of | 24 | | the country's most influential figures in artistic distinction |
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| 1 | | and arts education; and
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Dame Libby began her dance training and | 3 | | performance in classical ballet and
character dance as a young | 4 | | child with Elisa Stigler at the Chicago Musical College of | 5 | | Roosevelt
University; as a teen, she studied and performed | 6 | | jazz, modern, and musical theater with Gus
Giordano; at the age | 7 | | of 18, she auditioned for the legendary Jose Greco and was | 8 | | given the
opportunity to learn and perform with his world | 9 | | famous Spanish Dance Company; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, In 1983, the Spanish royal court awarded Dame | 11 | | Libby with the "Lazo de Dama de
Isabel la Catolica", or "Ribbon | 12 | | of the Dame"; she was the first American and one of only three
| 13 | | choreographers to receive this distinguished honor; she | 14 | | completed the filming of a
video documentary, Ensemble Espanol: | 15 | | The First 20 years, 1976-1996, in 1998; additional
honors | 16 | | include the Ruth Page Award (2003), the International Latino | 17 | | Cultural Center Lifetime
Achievement Award (2004), and the | 18 | | inaugural See Chicago Dance Legacy Award in 2017; she
produced | 19 | | a CD of Spanish music and castanets, "Dama Libby and Friends", | 20 | | which benefits the
Ensemble's Youth Scholarship and Endowment | 21 | | Funds; she taught at Northeastern
Illinois University for 37 | 22 | | years; she retired as professor emerita of the Northeastern | 23 | | Illinois
University department of music and dance in 2011 and | 24 | | received the university's distinguished
alumnus award in 2015; |
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| 1 | | and
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Northeastern Illinois University and the Ensemble | 3 | | Espanol Spanish Dance Theater are
hosting a memorial to honor | 4 | | the life and legacy of Dame Libby on April 27, 2019; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Dame Libby is survived by her sister, Leah | 6 | | Komaiko; her brothers, Bill and Dan
Komaiko; her birth | 7 | | daughter, Jen Miller; and her birth granddaughter, Amanda | 8 | | Miller; therefore, be it
| 9 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL | 10 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we offer our
| 11 | | condolences to the family and friends of Dame Libby Komaiko and | 12 | | honor the lasting legacy she
left for her students, colleagues, | 13 | | mentees, and many others; and be it further
| 14 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 15 | | presented to the family of Dame Libby as an
expression of our | 16 | | deepest sympathy.
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