Unfortunately, racism prevented her talents from being wholly accepted in the United States until 1973. Josephine Baker was born June 3, 1906 as Freda Josephine McDonald in St Louis Missouri. She started he career as a street musician in St. Louis and soon graduated to performing on the T.O.B.A. vaudeville circuit. In 1922 she landed a small part as a comedy chorus girl in the touring company of Sissle and Blake's musical revue "Shuffle Along".
He had a screen test by M-G-M, he appeared in the film Kiss Me Kate (1953). Since Kiss Me Kate was a highly original dance number, this led him to his first job as a choreographer. It was the Broadway hit directed by Jerome Robbins, The Pajama Game (1954). A little while later he met Gwen Verdon, who was a talented dancer. The two collaborated on several hit shows such as, Damn Yankee (1955, film 1958), New Girl in Town (1957), and Redhead (1959).
A Man of Mixture Lester Horton, American dancer, choreographer, and teacher was born on January 23 1906, in Indianapolis, Indiana. Horton’s fascination with the arts, ballet, and Native American dance led him to participate in local theatre productions. In 1928 Mr. Horton made a shocking decision to move to Los Angeles, California and began dancing in Michio Ito’s company and eventually ended up founding his own company. Moving to Los Angeles was a big step for Horton, since at that time New York was the main headquarters for American dance. Mr. Horton’s ability to translate ethnic dances into commercially acceptable formats led him to choreographing musical numbers for films from the 1940s through the early 1950s.
Later, he was introduced to dance teacher Lester Horton. Horton had a dance school in Hollywood and his style was more straightforward and what Ailey was looking for. When Ailey saw a school performance of fellow Jefferson High School student and Horton protégé, Carmen de Lavallade, he signed on with Horton. Lester Horton welcomed him to his company as part of the chorus. Soon after, Alvin had choreographed his first formal concert dance, Afternoon Blues, set to music from the Broadway show, On The Town.
At about 24 years of age, Hanya Holm saw a recital of Mary Wigman. After training in Germany, she worked at Mary Wigman’s Central Institute in Dresden as a dancer and teacher and later co director. In 1929 she danced the princess in one of the early productions of Stravinsky's The Soldier's Taleher first major solo part for which she did her own choreography. At that time she was not yet quite sure whether to become a dancer, choreographer, or teacher. In 1931 she opened a Wigman school in New York City, which became the Hanya Holm Studio in 1936.
He performed with the company in vaudeville throughout the United States and in concerts in England and the Orient. During an extended tour of the Far East, his interest in oriental dance was aroused, and he began studies with a Japanese teacher. In 1927, he and Doris Humphrey left Denishawn in protest against the romanticism of the repertory, and together they established a company and a school devoted to exploring a new aesthetic. It is the work of the company they founded and that of their contemporaries, Martha Graham and Hanya Holm that has come to be known as modern dance. Miss Humphrey and Mr. Weidman established new principles of technique, and choreographed many works together.
Maaz Fatmi : Ms.Storrod Maaz Fatmi : Ms.Storrod Sweet Charity Essay Music Due:January 19, 2012 Sweet Charity Essay Music Due:January 19, 2012 The Essay A remarkable musical of the 20th century was Sweet Charity. In this essay I will be analyzing the theatrical background of the musical. This essay will consist of the plot, main characters and background information of some of the people who helped to make this musical possible. I will also be giving a review of the musical talking about what I liked and whether I would recommend this musical for others to watch. Sweet Charity played for 608 performances on Broadway at the Palace Theatre starring Gwen Verdon, John McMartin, Helen Gallagher and Thelma Oliver.
This essay will be discussing Ditty’s ambitions and ideas about ballet and her parent’s point of view about how she should conduct her life. The essay will also be about the reasons that Ditty lied to her parents by continuing her attentiveness in ballet. Being in a Heradi Jewish family, Ditty’s life revolves all around her religion. There are certain rules that she must follow, things that she must do and things that she must not. Haredi Jewish girls must follow all of these rules until they reach 12 years old that is when they have a bat-mitzvah which is a ceremony for welcoming them into the Jewish world of adulthood.
She worked as a maid in a traveling theatrical company, and then, in 1917, the twenty-six-year-old lied about her age to gain admission to the Morgan Academy, graduating from the high school the following year. (“Humanist Profile”) “During her years in school, Zora Hurston was frequently in debt through she worked all sorts of jobs from a manicurist…to a maid for distinguished black families” (I Love Myself When I am Laughing 9). Hurston worked with fellow artists in her time as well including Langston Hughes. “The engaging and gregarious Hurston, together with Langston Hughes and other writers, formed what they called the Niggerati and published the literary magazine, Fire! !, in 1926” (“Humanist Profile”).
As she receives the role ‘all’ dancers want (the lead role of Swan Lake in the New York Dance Company) she is challenged by the dance master to “Let go. Let go. Let go”. While being perfect for the role of the White Swan, she is almost too perfect. After a life of having a mother live vicariously through her daughter, a persona may become a perfectionist, as demonstrated by the treatment of Nina’s mother [Erica].