Denise A Brown

Dallas has lost Denise Brown, a fixture of the dance scene for over 60 years. She died April 4th, at the age of 86, surrounded by her family after a long and courageous battle with Parkinson's disease.

Denise was one of the founders of Dallas Civic Ballet in 1957, serving as company manager. She had her choreography performed in the Southwest Regional Ballet Festival and the Dallas Dance Council awarded Denise the Mary Award for her contributions to dance in North Texas.

As a child, Denise's parents enrolled her in ballet at the suggestion of her physician to build up weak leg muscles. She fell in love with ballet and continued studying and performed with the junior company of the world famous Ballet Russe. Then, World War II forced her in a different direction. When Denise was seventeen, her father was arrested by the Nazis for his work with the French Resistance and sent on the first deportation from Paris to Auschwitz; Denise took up the cause and joined the Resistance as well. She proudly displayed the Croix de Lorraine medal she was awarded in 1945 by the Chief of the French Resistance for her efforts.

Denise worked as a translator for James Eugene Brown ("Gene", now deceased) a GI during the American occupation of Paris. They married in January of 1946 and, soon after, James brought his war bride home to Emhouse, Texas. Within a year, they moved to Dallas, where James, a graduate of SMU, was the Finance Director for University Park.

Denise began to teach ballet to the neighborhood children in their home in University Park. In 1950 she rented space on Lovers Lane and started the Denise Brown School of Ballet. Denise brought her love of ballet to thousands of students throughout her sixty years of teaching. Early students brought their children and then grandchildren to learn from the teacher who was demanding, but encouraging.
Denise's life story was chronicled in the book "They Also Served" written by Jeanie Sutton Lambright.

In 2007, Denise revealed a secret she had kept since coming to America. At the Bat Mitzvah ceremony of her granddaughter, Denise presented her with the Tallit, or prayer shawl, that had belonged to her father and revealed her Jewish heritage to the congregation of Temple Emanuel.

In 2010, Denise was a featured story on Channel 11 News. Karen Borta conducted the interview in which Denise told of revealing her Jewish heritage.

For her ballet school's 60th anniversary in 2010, Denise was honored with a documentary of her life. In it, Denise said that for her, "Dancing was like touching heaven," and that is how she lived her life. Today, she is free to dance again.

Denise was born in Paris, France February 25, 1925. She was the daughter of Sadi and Renee Levy Lattes, and the sister of Robert Levy Lattes (d). She is survived by daughters Janine Lichstein (Santa Monica, CA), Anette Brown, Evelyn Johnson and son Michael Brown (Kingwood, Tx.), daughter-in-law Therese Brown, sons-in-law Henry Lichstein and John Johnson, grandchildren: Daniel Lichstein (d), Zander Lichstein (Morina), Sarah Brown Chatfield (David), Emily Brown Schrader (Adam), Jordon Brown, Madison Johnson, and Mackenzie Johnson, and two great grandsons: Oliver Lichstein and Jack Chatfield.

The family would like to thank the staff of The Legacy at Preston Hollow and the nurses of Vitas Hospice Care for the compassionate care they provided Denise and the family.

Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, April 7th at Temple Emanuel, 8500 Hillcrest Dallas, TX. Rabbi David Stern will officiate. Burial will follow at Sparkman Hillcrest, 7405 West Northwest Highway Dallas, TX. 75225.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services 4760 South Sepulveda Blvd. Culver City, CA 90230, or Anchor Center for Blind Children 2550 Roslyn Street Denver, CO. 80238.