Alexander Cochran Ewing, whose remarkable life took him from ballet administration to cattle breeding to leading one of the nation’s great art schools, died Wednesday, December 27, in Winston-Salem, NC, of respiratory failure. Born on February 25, 1931, he grew up in New York City and attended St. Paul’s School and Yale College, where he played on the squash and tennis teams. He had two blissfully happy marriages, to Carol Sonne Ewing for 11 years, and, following her death, to Sheila Cobb Ewing, his soulmate for 45 years until she died in 2015.
The son of legendary dancer and American Ballet Theatre Artistic Director Lucia Chase, as a young man he was one of three founding directors and General Director of the City Center Joffrey Ballet, whose eclectic repertoire mixed long-lost historically significant classical works with pathbreaking contemporary rock ballets. Following Carol’s death, Alex wanted to be present full-time with his children in Millbrook, NY and ceased commuting to New York City for ballet work. With no prior knowledge or experience in agriculture, he transformed himself into one of the leading breeders of Polled Hereford cattle in the country, producing multiple National Grand Champions and being named National Premier Breeder. In 1990, this cattle breeder from New York was named Chancellor of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. He and Sheila moved to Winston-Salem, where he served as Chancellor from 1990-2000. Under his leadership, NCSA established the first professional film school in the Southeast, commenced a long-range campus building program, tripled the size of the endowment and established the Lucia Chase Endowed Fellowship in Dance in honor of his mother. A beloved figure on the NCSA campus, he remained heavily involved in the school for the rest of his life, serving as Chancellor Emeritus and interim Dean of Dance, and continuing to attend, together with Sheila, innumerable student performances. He also wrote a book, “Bravura!,” about his mother’s life and career with American Ballet Theatre. He raised four children, Sandy, Eric and Caroline Ewing and stepdaughter Cecilia Clarke, setting them an exemplary standard through his extraordinary open-mindedness, generosity, and thoughtfulness toward others regardless of their station in life, his lifelong friendships of up to 80 years’ duration, and his love for animals and nature. He infused his life and parenting with whimsy and fun, telling bedtime stories about ludicrously-named fictional characters who became part of his family’s life, and celebrating holidays and special occasions in extravagant style. In addition to his four children, he is survived by eight grandchildren: Allegra Eifler, Alden and Caleb Ewing, Nathan, Seth and Henry Ewing-Crystal, and Josephine and Simon Born. The funeral will be Tuesday, January 2, at 2 pm at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in WinstonSalem.
Contributions may be made to the Alex and Sheila Ewing Scholarship fund at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.
