Cavett John “Johnny” Cavelle, 85, passed away Tuesday, May 23^rd, 2023, at Avantara nursing home in Groton, South Dakota.

   Johnny Cavelle was born in Boone, Iowa on November 9^th, 1937, to his mother Faye (Bollenbaugh) Harvey. On the passing of his father, she was his sole parent and held an incredibly important place in his heart through the many stages of his life.

  Cavelle was a piano virtuoso at an early age. He wasn’t one to need sheet music and could play for hours. As young as 12 and 13 years old, he would hop on the train to Chicago from his home in Boone, IA to accompany ballet classes over the weekends. This is where his love for ballet grew.

  It was piano that brought Cavelle to South Dakota, playing at the local piano bars. During that time, he was made aware of the need for dance instruction in the area. In 1969, he opened Johnny Cavelle Dance Studio in Aberdeen, South Dakota. He continued to branch out from there, opening studios across Northeast South Dakota in Redfield, Watertown, Huron, Miller, Sisseton, and Milbank. During that time, he was also on staff for Julie Briggs in Brandon, SD. Over the years, he invited many guest artists to these studios, exposing his students to the best of the best when it came to the art form.

  Cavelle was implemental in bringing the Cecchetti Method, a technique of teaching classical ballet, to the area. In 1984, shortly after being introduced to it, he began training his students in the method. It was important to him to work with his students using a method that offered both a rich heritage and a solid technical progression. Cavelle was one of the Charter members of both the Northern Plains Committee and the Black Hills Committee of the Cecchetti Council of America.

  It was a dream of his to put on the Nutcracker with a full symphony. This came to fruition in 1999. The Watertown Area Symphony Orchestra performed the ballet with his dancers in December that year.

   Over the decades, Cavelle was responsible for the dance education of thousands of students. He inspired many to become dance instructors themselves. They have opened studios and teach in the area and beyond, continuing his legacy to this day.

  While he is well known for his impact in the dance community, he lived a long life which included many interesting and unique facets. In addition to dance, Cavelle taught mens gymnastics in Aberdeen. He taught at Brigham Young University-Hawaii. He studied nursing at Presentation College, while he created the Associate Dance Teaching Program there.

  Cavelle had a beautiful farm in Tulare, SD that would transform into a Christmas Store come that time of year. That same farm eventually became a Dance Ranch where students would take classes with guest artists in the summer. He loved his many birds and had a hobby farm including peacocks, swans that lived at his very own “swan lake”, geese, and ducks.

  He is preceded in death by his parents, and his beloved Cocker Spaniel Farrah.