She built her own dance empire and was hailed as the queen of black dance. "In introducing authentic African dance-movements to her company and audiences, Dunhamperhaps more than any other choreographer of the timeexploded the possibilities of modern dance expression.". "The Case for Letting Anthropology Burn: Sociocultural Anthropology in 2019." This was followed by television spectaculars filmed in London, Buenos Aires, Toronto, Sydney, and Mexico City. On February 22, 2022, Selkirk will offer a unique, one-lot auction titled, Divine Technique: Katherine Dunham Ephemera And Documents. The result of this trip was Dunham's Master's thesis entitled "The Dances of Haiti". [14] Redfield, Herskovits, and Sapir's contributions to cultural anthropology, exposed Dunham to topics and ideas that inspired her creatively and professionally. She wrote that he "opened the floodgates of anthropology" for her. [17] She was one of the first African-American women to attend this college and to earn these degrees. Dun ham had one of the most successful dance careers in African-American and European theater of the 20th century, and directed her own dance company for many years. VV A. Clark and Sara E. Johnson, editors, Joliet Central High School Yearbook, 1928. First Name Katherine #37. In 2004 she received a Lifetime Achievement Award from, In 2005, she was awarded "Outstanding Leadership in Dance Research" by the. The program she created runs to this day at the Katherine Dunham Centers for Arts and Humanities, revolutionizing lives with dance and culture. She was the first American dancer to present indigenous forms on a concert stage, the first to sustain a black dance company. She created and performed in works for stage, clubs, and Hollywood films; she started a school and a technique that continue to flourish; she fought unstintingly for racial justice. Known for her many innovations, Dunham developed a dance pedagogy, later named the Dunham Technique, a style of movement and exercises based in traditional African dances, to support her choreography. Years later, after extensive studies and initiations in Haiti,[21] she became a mambo in the Vodun religion. Please scroll down to enjoy more supporting materials. Katherine Johnson graduated from college at age 18. She was born on June 22, 1909 in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, a small suburb of Chicago, to Albert Millard Dunham, a tailor and dry cleaner, and his wife, Fanny June Dunham. The company returned to New York. The Dunham Technique Ballet African Dancing Her favorite color was platinum Caribbean Dancing Her favorite food was Filet of Sole How she started out Ballet African Dance Caribbean Dance The Dunham Technique wasn't so much as a technique so Harrison, Faye V. "Decolonizing Anthropology Moving Further Toward and Anthropology for Liberation." Subsequently, Dunham undertook various choreographic commissions at several venues in the United States and in Europe. Katherine Dunham (born June 22, 1909) [1] was an American dancer, choreographer, and anthropologist [1]. Katherine Dunham. Dunham was born in Chicago on June 22, 1909. Katherine Dunham (1909-2006) By Halifu Osumare Katherine Dunham was a world famous dancer, choreographer, author, anthropologist, social activist, and humanitarian. 6 Katherine Dunham facts. New York: Rizzoli, 1989. "Katherine Dunham's Dance as Public Anthropology. Katherine Johnson, ne Katherine Coleman, also known as (1939-56) Katherine Goble, (born August 26, 1918, White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, U.S.died February 24, 2020, Newport News, Virginia), American mathematician who calculated and analyzed the flight paths of many spacecraft during her more than three decades with the U.S. space program. 2023 The HistoryMakers. Interesting facts. She did this for many reasons. Gender: Female. There, he ran a dry cleaning business in a place mostly occupied by white people. ", Scholar of the arts Harold Cruse wrote in 1964: "Her early and lifelong search for meaning and artistic values for black people, as well as for all peoples, has motivated, created opportunities for, and launched careers for generations of young black artists Afro-American dance was usually in the avant-garde of modern dance Dunham's entire career spans the period of the emergence of Afro-American dance as a serious art. She taught dance lessons to help pay for her education at the University of Chicago. The committee voted unanimously to award $2,400 (more than $40,000 in today's money) to support her fieldwork in the Caribbean. American dancer and choreographer (19092006). On graduating with a bachelors degree in anthropology she undertook field studies in the Caribbean and in Brazil. After her company performed successfully, Dunham was chosen as dance director of the Chicago Negro Theater Unit of the Federal Theatre Project. This is where, in the late 1960s, global dance legend Katherine Dunham put down roots and taught the arts of the African diaspora to local children and teenagers. Birth date: October 17, 1956. 47 Copy quote. Her fieldwork inspired her innovative interpretations of dance in the Caribbean, South America, and Africa. The Washington Post called her "dancer Katherine the Great." In 1992, at age 83, Dunham went on a highly publicized hunger strike to protest the discriminatory U.S. foreign policy against Haitian boat-people. Glory Van Scott and Jean-Lon Destin were among other former Dunham dancers who remained her lifelong friends. Katherine Dunham, was published in a limited, numbered edition of 130 copies by the Institute for the Study of Social Change. ", Kraut, Anthea, "Between Primitivism and Diaspora: The Dance Performances of, This page was last edited on 12 February 2023, at 22:48. From the solar system to the world economy to educational games, Fact Monster has the info kids are seeking. Katherine Mary Dunham (June 22, 1909 - May 21, 2006) was an American dancer, choreographer, creator of the Dunham Technique, author, educator, anthropologist, and social activist. Beautiful, Justice, Black. Pratt, who was white, shared Dunham's interests in African-Caribbean cultures and was happy to put his talents in her service. Q. Katherine Mary Dun ham was an African-American dancer, choreographer, author, educator, anthropologist, and social activist. London: Zed Books, 1999. By the time she received an M.A. He has released six stand-up specials and one album of Christmas songs. Fun facts. Over the years Katherine Dunham has received scores of special awards, including more than a dozen honorary doctorates from various American universities. 4 (December 2010): 640642. This concert, billed as Tropics and Le Hot Jazz, included not only her favorite partners Archie Savage and Talley Beatty, but her principal Haitian drummer, Papa Augustin. Katherine Dunham got an early bachelor's degree in anthropology as a student at the University of Chicago. Video. Born in 1909 #28. Barrelhouse. Book. Katherine Dunham and John Pratt married in 1949 to adopt Marie-Christine, a French 14-month-old baby. Dunham also received a grant to work with Professor Melville Herskovits of Northwestern University, whose ideas about retention of African culture among African Americans served as a base for her research in the Caribbean. [18] to the Department of Anthropology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a master's degree. Check out this biography to know about his childhood, family life, achievements and fun facts about him. The Met Ballet Company dancers studied Dunham Technique at Dunham's 42nd Street dance studio for the entire summer leading up to the season opening of Aida. The highly respected Dance magazine did a feature cover story on Dunham in August 2000 entitled "One-Woman Revolution". Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples. She decided to live for a year in relative isolation in Kyoto, Japan, where she worked on writing memoirs of her youth. "[48] During her protest, Dick Gregory led a non-stop vigil at her home, where many disparate personalities came to show their respect, such Debbie Allen, Jonathan Demme, and Louis Farrakhan, leader of the Nation of Islam. She was instrumental in getting respect for Black dancers on the concert dance stage and directed the first self-supported Black dance company. [8], Despite her choosing dance, Dunham often voiced recognition of her debt to the discipline: "without [anthropology] I don't know what I would have done.In anthropology, I learned how to feel about myself in relation to other people. [ ] Katherine Dunham was born on June 22, 1909 (age 96) in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, United States. It closed after only 38 performances. Commonly grouped into the realm of modern dance techniques, Dunham is a technical dance form developed from elements of indigenous African and Afro-Caribbean dances. Died: May 21, 2006. The Black Tradition in American Modern Dance. Her mother passed away when Katherine was only 3 years old. 288 pages, Hardcover. She also appeared in the Broadway musicals "Bal . April 30, 2019. Chin, Elizabeth. Video. Katherine Dunham facts for kids. Her mission was to help train the Senegalese National Ballet and to assist President Leopold Senghor with arrangements for the First Pan-African World Festival of Negro Arts in Dakar (196566). 3 (1992): 24. Dunham also studied ballet with Mark Turbyfill and Ruth Page, who became prima ballerina of the Chicago Opera. forming a powerful personal. Dunham's mother, Fanny June Dunham (ne Taylor), who was of mixed French-Canadian and Native American heritage. Alvin Ailey later produced a tribute for her in 198788 at Carnegie Hall with his American Dance Theater, entitled The Magic of Katherine Dunham. Katherine Dunham or the "Matriarch of Black Dance'' as many called her, was a revolutionary African American anthropologist and professional dancer. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, . Fighting, Alive, Have Faith. The Dunham troupe toured for two decades, stirring audiences around the globe with their dynamic and highly theatrical performances. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Dunham technique is also inviting to the influence of cultural movement languages outside of dance including karate and capoeira.[36]. Example. Another fact is that it was the sometime home of the pioneering black American dancer Katherine Dunham. Alumnae include Eartha Kitt, Marlon Brando and Julie Belafonte. Updates? Birth Year: 1956. You dance because you have to. After Mexico, Dunham began touring in Europe, where she was an immediate sensation. Dunham is still taught at widely recognized dance institutions such as The American Dance Festival and The Ailey School. In 1963, Dunham became the first African-American to choreograph for the Metropolitan Opera. Dunham was always a formidable advocate for racial equality, boycotting segregated venues in the United States and using her performances to highlight discrimination. USA. Katherine Dunham in 1956. Dunham ended her fast only after exiled Haitian president Jean-Bertrand Aristide and Jesse Jackson came to her and personally requested that she stop risking her life for this cause. In 1963 Dunham was commissioned to choreograph Aida at New York's Metropolitan Opera Company, with Leontyne Price in the title role. Unlike other modern dance creators who eschewed classical ballet, Dunham embraced it as a foundation for her technique. Dancer, choreographer, composer and songwriter, educated at the University of Chicago. On another occasion, in October 1944, after getting a rousing standing ovation in Louisville, Kentucky, she told the all-white audience that she and her company would not return because "your management will not allow people like you to sit next to people like us." Luminaries like Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey and Katherine Dunham began to shape and define what this new genre of dance would be. Based on her research in Martinique, this three-part performance integrated elements of a Martinique fighting dance into American ballet. In 1978, an anthology of writings by and about her, also entitled Kaiso! In 1963, she became the first African American to choreograph for the Met since Hemsley Winfield set the dances for The Emperor Jones in 1933. Episode 5 of Break the FACTS! After the 1968 riots following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., Dunham encouraged gang members in the ghetto to come to the center to use drumming and dance to vent their frustrations. [13] Under their tutelage, she showed great promise in her ethnographic studies of dance. A highlight of Dunham's later career was the invitation from New York's Metropolitan Opera to stage dances for a new production of Aida, starring soprano Leontyne Price. In 1946, Dunham returned to Broadway for a revue entitled Bal Ngre, which received glowing notices from theater and dance critics. Classes are led by Ruby Streate, director of dance and education and artistic director of the Katherine Dunham Children's Workshop. She also danced professionally, owned a dance company, and operated a dance studio. Her dance company was provided with rent-free studio space for three years by an admirer and patron, Lee Shubert; it had an initial enrollment of 350 students. Dunham is credited with introducing international audiences to African aesthetics and establishing African dance as a true art form. In 1931, at the age of 21, Dunham formed a group called Ballets Ngres, one of the first black ballet companies in the United States. Her father was of black ancestry, a descendant of slaves from West Africa and Madagascar, while her mother belonged to mixed French-Canadian and Native . In August she was awarded a bachelor's degree, a Ph.B., bachelor of philosophy, with her principal area of study being social anthropology. She returned to the United States in 1936 informed by new methods of movement and expression, which she incorporated into techniques that transformed the world of dance. Later Dunham established a second home in Senegal, and she occasionally returned there to scout for talented African musicians and dancers. Dunhams writings, sometimes published under the pseudonym Kaye Dunn, include Katherine Dunhams Journey to Accompong (1946), an account of her anthropological studies in Jamaica; A Touch of Innocence (1959), an autobiography; Island Possessed (1969); and several articles for popular and scholarly journals. Birthday : June 22, 1909. As Julia Foulkes pointed out, "Dunham's path to success lay in making high art in the United States from African and Caribbean sources, capitalizing on a heritage of dance within the African Diaspora, and raising perceptions of African American capabilities."[65]. The following year, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson nominated Dunham to be technical cultural advisera sort of cultural ambassadorto the government of Senegal in West Africa. Katherine Dunham introduced African and Caribbean rhythms to modern dance. 52 Copy quote. Dunham early became interested in dance. Katherine Dunham (1909-2006) brought African dance aesthetics to the United States, forever influencing modern and jazz dance. As one of her biographers, Joyce Aschenbrenner, wrote: "Today, it is safe to say, there is no American black dancer who has not been influenced by the Dunham Technique, unless he or she works entirely within a classical genre",[2] and the Dunham Technique is still taught to anyone who studies modern dance. She and her company frequently had difficulties finding adequate accommodations while on tour because in many regions of the country, black Americans were not allowed to stay at hotels. [54], Six decades before this new wave of anthropological discourse began, Katherine Dunham's work demonstrated anthropology being used as a force for challenging racist and colonial ideologies. As celebrities, their voices can have a profound influence on popular culture. Charm Dance from "L'Ag'Ya". While trying to help the young people in the community, Dunham was arrested. American Anthropologist 122, no. As I document in my book Katherine Dunham: Dance and the . . The incident was widely discussed in the Brazilian press and became a hot political issue. most important pedagogues original work which includes :Batuada. Her legacy was far-reaching, both in dance and her cultural and social work. [9] In high school she joined the Terpsichorean Club and began to learn a kind of modern dance based on the ideas of Europeans [mile Jaques-Dalcroze] and [Rudolf von Laban]. Long, Richard A, and Joe Nash. Together, they produced the first version of her dance composition L'Ag'Ya, which premiered on January 27, 1938, as a part of the Federal Theater Project in Chicago. Other movies she performed in as a dancer during this period included the Abbott and Costello comedy Pardon My Sarong (1942) and the black musical Stormy Weather (1943), which featured a stellar range of actors, musicians and dancers.[24]. 2 (2012): 159168. Katherine returnedto to the usa in 1931 miss Dunham met one of. Called the Matriarch of Black Dance, her groundbreaking repertoire combined innovative interpretations of Caribbean dances, traditional ballet, African rituals and African American rhythms to create the Dunham Technique, which she performed with her dance troupe in venues around the world. International dance icon Katherine Dunham (right,) also an anthropologist, founded an art museum in East St. Louis, IL. In 1921, a short story she wrote when she was 12 years old, called "Come Back to Arizona", was published in volume 2 of The Brownies' Book. Dunham, Katherine dnm . Not only did Dunham shed light on the cultural value of black dance, but she clearly contributed to changing perceptions of blacks in America by showing society that as a black woman, she could be an intelligent scholar, a beautiful dancer, and a skilled choreographer. About that time Dunham met and began to work with John Thomas Pratt, a Canadian who had become one of America's most renowned costume and theatrical set designers. The company was located on the property that formerly belonged to the Isadora Duncan Dance in Caravan Hill but subsequently moved to W 43rd Street. She was likely named after Catherine of Aragon. for teaching dance that is still la'ag'ya , Shange , Veraruzana, nanigo. Kraft from the story by Jerry Horwin and Seymour B. Robinson, directed by Andrew L. Stone, produced by William LeBaron and starring Lena Horne, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, and Cab Calloway.The film is one of two Hollywood musicals with an African . [14] For example, she was highly influenced both by Sapir's viewpoint on culture being made up of rituals, beliefs, customs and artforms, and by Herkovits' and Redfield's studies highlighting links between African and African American cultural expression. This initiative drew international publicity to the plight of the Haitian boat-people and U.S. discrimination against them. She was one of the first researchers in anthropology to use her research of Afro-Haitian dance and culture for remedying racist misrepresentation of African culture in the miseducation of Black Americans. Katherine Dunham is credited Her dance troupe in venues around. Alvin Ailey, who stated that he first became interested in dance as a professional career after having seen a performance of the Katherine Dunham Company as a young teenager of 14 in Los Angeles, called the Dunham Technique "the closest thing to a unified Afro-American dance existing.". For several years, Dunham's personal assistant and press promoter was Maya Deren, who later also became interested in Vodun and wrote The Divine Horseman: The Voodoo Gods of Haiti (1953). ", Examples include: The Ballet in film "Stormy Weather" (Stone 1943) and "Mambo" (Rossen 1954). Lyndon B. Johnson was in the audience for opening night. [37] One historian noted that "during the course of the tour, Dunham and the troupe had recurrent problems with racial discrimination, leading her to a posture of militancy which was to characterize her subsequent career."[38]. [41] The State Department was dismayed by the negative view of American society that the ballet presented to foreign audiences. Dunham used Habitation Leclerc as a private retreat for many years, frequently bringing members of her dance company to recuperate from the stress of touring and to work on developing new dance productions. By 1957, Dunham was under severe personal strain, which was affecting her health. At an early age, Dunham became interested in dance. She had incurred the displeasure of departmental officials when her company performed Southland, a ballet that dramatized the lynching of a black man in the racist American South. In 1950, Sol Hurok presented Katherine Dunham and Her Company in a dance revue at the Broadway Theater in New York, with a program composed of some of Dunham's best works. [13] University of Chicago's anthropology department was fairly new and the students were still encouraged to learn aspects of sociology, distinguishing it from other anthropology departments in the US that focused almost exclusively on non-Western peoples. Also Known For : . Katherine Dunham Biography, Life, Interesting Facts. Even in retirement Dunham continued to choreograph: one of her major works was directing the premiere full, posthumous production Scott Joplin's opera Treemonisha in 1972, a joint production of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and the Morehouse College chorus in Atlanta, conducted by Robert Shaw. In December 1951, a photo of Dunham dancing with Ismaili Muslim leader Prince Ali Khan at a private party he had hosted for her in Paris appeared in a popular magazine and fueled rumors that the two were romantically linked. In 1966, she served as a State Department representative for the United States to the first ever World Festival of Negro Arts in Dakar, Senegal. She also created several other works of choreography, including The Emperor Jones (a response to the play by Eugene O'Neill) and Barrelhouse. New York City, U.S. In 2000 Katherine Dunham was named America's irreplaceable Dance Treasure. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Throughout her distinguished career, Dunham earned numerous honorary doctorates, awards and honors. Katherine Dunham was an African-American dancer and choreographer, producer, author, scholar, anthropologist and Civil Rights activist. She is a celebrity dancer. Artists are necessary to social justice movements; they are the ones who possess a gift to see beyond the bleak present and imagine a better future. [1] The Dunham Technique is still taught today. Receiving a post graduate academic fellowship, she went to the Caribbean to study the African diaspora, ethnography and local dance. She was also consulted on costuming for the Egyptian and Ethiopian dress. Dunham had been invited to stage a new number for the popular, long-running musical revue Pins and Needles 1940, produced by the International Ladies' Garment Workers Union. She made national headlines by staging a hunger strike to protest the U.S. governments repatriation policy for Haitian immigrants. It was considered one of the best learning centers of its type at the time. "My job", she said, "is to create a useful legacy. Her alumni included many future celebrities, such as Eartha Kitt. It next moved to the West Coast for an extended run of performances there. [1] Dunham also created the Dunham Technique. Katherine Dunham, it includes photographs highlighting the many dimensions of Dunham's life and work. Although it was well received by the audience, local censors feared that the revealing costumes and provocative dances might compromise public morals. In 1937 she traveled with them to New York to take part in A Negro Dance Evening, organized by Edna Guy at the 92nd Street YMHA. At the age of 82, Dunham went on a hunger strike in . The schools she created helped train such notables as Alvin Ailey and Jerome Robbins in the "Dunham technique." Death . : Writings by and About Katherine Dunham. Katherine Dunham, a world-renowned dancer and choreographer, had big plans for East St. Louis in 1977. [50] Both Dunham and the prince denied the suggestion. Katherine Dunham is the inventor of the Dunham technique and a renowned dancer and choreographer of African-American descent. Dunham had one of the most successful dance careers in American and European theater of the 20th century, and directed her own dance company for many years. Katherine Dunham was born on the 22nd of June, 1909 in Chicago before she was taken by her parents to their hometown at Glen Ellyn in Illinois. Birth City: Decatur. Dunham married Jordis McCoo, a black postal worker, in 1931, but he did not share her interests and they gradually drifted apart, finally divorcing in 1938. Anthropology News 33, no. Others who attended her school included James Dean, Gregory Peck, Jose Ferrer, Jennifer Jones, Shelley Winters, Sidney Poitier, Shirley MacLaine and Warren Beatty. She directed the Katherine Dunham School of Dance in New York, and was artist-in-residence at Southern Illinois University. Regarding her impact and effect he wrote: "The rise of American Negro dance commenced when Katherine Dunham and her company skyrocketed into the Windsor Theater in New York, from Chicago in 1940, and made an indelible stamp on the dance world Miss Dunham opened the doors that made possible the rapid upswing of this dance for the present generation." Featuring lively Latin American and Caribbean dances, plantation dances, and American social dances, the show was an immediate success. While Dunham was recognized as "unofficially" representing American cultural life in her foreign tours, she was given very little assistance of any kind by the U.S. State Department. informed by new methods of america's most highly regarded. Born in 1909 during the turn of the century Victorian era in the small town of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, she became one of the first dance anthropologists, started the first internationally-touring pre-dominantly black dance company . One recurring theme that I really . There she met John Pratt, an artist and designer and they got married in 1941 until his death in 1986. The living Dunham tradition has persisted. Here are some interesting facts about Alvin Ailey for you: Facts about Alvin Ailey 1: the popular modern dance In 1976, Dunham was guest artist-in-residence and lecturer for Afro-American studies at the University of California, Berkeley. As an African American woman, she broke barriers of race and gender, most notably as the founder of an important dance company that toured the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Australia for several decades. In 1938 she joined the Federal Theatre Project in Chicago and composed a ballet, LAgYa, based on Caribbean dance. [10], After completing her studies at Joliet Junior College in 1928, Dunham moved to Chicago to join her brother Albert at the University of Chicago. Writings by and about Katherine Dunham" , Katherine Dunham, 2005. Katherine Dunham on dance anthropology. ", "Dunham's European success led to considerable imitation of her work in European revues it is safe to say that the perspectives of concert-theatrical dance in Europe were profoundly affected by the performances of the Dunham troupe. Dunham saved the day by arranging for the company to be paid to appear in a German television special, Karibische Rhythmen, after which they returned to the United States. Katherine Dunham. While in Haiti, she hasn't only studied Vodun rituals, but also participated and became a mambo, female high priest in the Vodun religion. The recipient of numerous awards, Dunham received a Kennedy Center Honor in 1983 and the National Medal of Arts in 1989. During these years, the Dunham company appeared in some 33 countries in Europe, North Africa, South America, Australia, and East Asia. Her technique was "a way of life". [52], On May 21, 2006, Dunham died in her sleep from natural causes in New York City.

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