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BRIDGEWATER, NJ
Joan (Orecchio) Konrad 81, passed peacefully at home, in Bridgewater, NJ, Friday, October 30, 2020.
Born on February 22, 1939, in Somerville, New Jersey to Rose Cicero, Joan enjoyed her early life amongst a very close knit family of her beloved mother, Rose, grandmother Josephine, sister Dolores and many wonderful aunts, uncles and cousins. Joan began classical ballet lessons at age five locally and then went on to study in New York City with Nina Straganova, Danish Ballerina, Boris Novikoff, Director of the Russin American Ballet Company and Jack Stanley. Joan also studied advanced modern dance techniques at The New School For Social Research (NYC) in co-operation with The Choreographers Theatre.
In 1952, mother Rose, sister, Dolores and Joan opened the Dee Dee And Joan School Of The Dance in Somerville, New Jersey. Miss Joan, age 16, formerly began her extraordinary career by teaching classical ballet, tap, jazz, modern dance, acrobatics, ballroom dancing, Hawaiian dancing and baton twirling in 1955. She had professional stage and television experience for many years as well. Miss Joan went on tour with the Roxyettes, in the summer of 1956 and often referred to being a Roxyette, as one of the greatest experiences of her dance career. She was first a member and then later became vice president of the National Association of Dance and Affiliated Artists Dance Educators of America.
Joan was a graduate of Barbizon School of Modeling, N.Y.C. Joan graduated in 1957 from Somerville High School, Somerville, NJ. Miss Joan began studying drama/acting at Showcase Theatre For Actors, New York City under teachers Sylvia Leigh and Mark Justin, in the late 1960's through the early 1970's. Joan was also the key choreographer of Toot '66, a musical satire, that was presented by the Somerset County Fairgrounds, in August of 1966.
On August 12, 1967, Joan married her love, Martin L. Konrad. They had a beautiful church ceremony and then they went on a fabulous honeymoon to Hawaii. They lived in an apartment in North Plainfield, NJ for over five years and then settled permanently in Bridgewater, New Jersey.
In September of 1973, Joan and Martin became parents to their only child, Melinda, who they adopted as an infant, at age four and half months old, from Seoul, South Korea. She was always a very devoted, nurturing, very loving, doting, supportive and irreplaceable Mother to Melinda. In December of 1990, she became a grandmother to her cherished, precious grandson, Tyler. Miss Joan had 362 students during the peak of her career and taught generations of thousands of children, teenagers and adults. She loved and was especially passionate about directing, choreographing and brilliantly creating her spectacular dance recitals with fantastic themes and genres of dance, that were shown at several different high school auditoriums over several decades. Joan continued to excel and enjoy her career as a ballet/dance/drama teacher, while relocating a few times and continued to remain open for new and long term students, in her home in Bridgewater, NJ, until her retirement at age 77, in 2016, after sixty-one years of profound and inspirational work. Miss Joan lived a very happy, fulfilling, successful, family/friend/student/teacher oriented life. She truly had her dreams come true, during the course of her lifetime.
Joan Orecchio Konrad is a very celebrated, respected, precious figure in her community of Somerset County, NJ and will always be very highly regarded, loved and deeply missed by all her family, friends and students. Miss Joan and her family gratefully thank each and every student and their families for the immeasurable joy, happiness and enrichment that she had been blessed with, in her life, through being a ballet/dance/drama teacher. All of her students over many years have provided her with a genuine and amazing legacy of being an outstanding teacher.
Joan, is predeceased by her beloved Mother, Rose Cicero and many loved aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. Surviving Joan, is her ex-husband, Martin Konrad of Bridgewater, NJ, daughter, Melinda Konrad and son-in-law Kenneth M. Dyal, of Hilliard, Florida, grandsons Tyler Konrad and Christopher Huggins, sister, Dolores Orecchio Amodea, many nieces, great nieces, great nephews, great-great nieces, great-great nephews, cousins, and friends.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated 9:30am on Saturday, November 21, at the Immaculate Conception Church, Somerville followed by the burial of her ashes at the Immaculate Conception Cemetery, Somerville.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Joan's memory to Alzheimer's New Jersey, 425 Eagle Rock Ave., Suite 203, Roseland, NJ 07068. The Mass will be available Virtually. You may contact Joan's family for more information.
