International Ladies' Garment Workers Union, First Pan-African World Festival of Negro Arts, National Museum of Dance's Mr. & Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Hall of Fame, "Katherine Dunham | African American dancer, choreographer, and anthropologist", "Timeline: The Katherine Dunham Collection at the Library of Congress (Performing Arts Encyclopedia, The Library of Congress)", "Special Presentation: Katherine Dunham Timeline". Her dance career was interrupted in 1935 when she received funding from the Rosenwald Foundation which allowed her to travel to Jamaica, Martinique, Trinidad, and Haiti for eighteen months to explore each country's respective dance cultures. A actor. Childhood & Early Life. Dunham technique is also inviting to the influence of cultural movement languages outside of dance including karate and capoeira.[36]. [20] She also became friends with, among others, Dumarsais Estim, then a high-level politician, who became president of Haiti in 1949. Katherine Dunham (1909-2006) is revered as one of the great pillars of American dance history. [16], After her research tour of the Caribbean in 1935, Dunham returned to Chicago in the late spring of 1936. Her technique was "a way of life". 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. Katherine Dunham was an African-American dancer and choreographer, producer, author, scholar, anthropologist and Civil Rights activist. Updates? The group performed Dunham's Negro Rhapsody at the Chicago Beaux Arts Ball. Text:. The troupe performed a suite of West Indian dances in the first half of the program and a ballet entitled Tropic Death, with Talley Beatty, in the second half. In 1950, while visiting Brazil, Dunham and her group were refused rooms at a first-class hotel in So Paulo, the Hotel Esplanada, frequented by many American businessmen. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. In Boston, then a bastion of conservatism, the show was banned in 1944 after only one performance. 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. In 2000 she was named one of the first one hundred of "America's Irreplaceable Dance Treasures" by the Dance Heritage Coalition. "Katherine Dunham: Decolonizing Anthropology through African American Dance Pedagogy." In the mid-1930s she conducted anthropological research on dance and incorporated her findings into her choreography, blending the rhythms and movements of . April 30, 2019. She was also consulted on costuming for the Egyptian and Ethiopian dress. She has been called the "matriarch and queen mother of black dance." Dunham's mother, Fanny June Dunham (ne Taylor), who was of mixed French-Canadian and Native American heritage. The recipient of numerous awards, Dunham received a Kennedy Center Honor in 1983 and the National Medal of Arts in 1989. 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. From the 40s to the 60s, Dunham and her dance troupe toured to 57 countries of the world. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Katherine-Dunham, The Kennedy Center - Biography of Katherine Dunham, Katherine Dunham - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). Alumnae include Eartha Kitt, Marlon Brando and Julie Belafonte. 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]. [7] The family moved to a predominantly white neighborhood in Joliet, Illinois. Katherine Mary Dunham (June 22, 1909 May 21, 2006)[1] was an American dancer, choreographer, anthropologist, and social activist. As celebrities, their voices can have a profound influence on popular culture. [12] Jeff Dunham hails from Dallas, Texas. [1] Dunham also created the Dunham Technique. One recurring theme that I really . However, it has now became a common practice within the discipline. However, after her father remarried, Albert Sr. and his new wife, Annette Poindexter Dunham, took in Katherine and her brother. When she was not performing, Dunham and Pratt often visited Haiti for extended stays. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, . Classes are led by Ruby Streate, director of dance and education and artistic director of the Katherine Dunham Children's Workshop. The company returned to New York. Katherine Dunham, pseudonym Kaye Dunn, (born June 22, 1909, Glen Ellyn, Illinois, U.S.died May 21, 2006, New York, New York), American dancer and choreographer who was a pioneer in the field of dance anthropology. A short biography on the legendary Katherine Dunham.All information found at: kdcah.org Enjoy the short history lesson and visit dancingindarkskin.com for mo. Years later, after extensive studies and initiations in Haiti,[21] she became a mambo in the Vodun religion. 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. Video footage of Dunham technique classes show a strong emphasis on anatomical alignment, breath, and fluidity. "What Dunham gave modern dance was a coherent lexicon of African and Caribbean styles of movementa flexible torso and spine, articulated pelvis and isolation of the limbs, a polyrhythmic strategy of movingwhich she integrated with techniques of ballet and modern dance." Intrigued by this theory, Dunham began to study African roots of dance and, in 1935, she traveled to the Caribbean for field research. [54] After recovering crucial dance epistemologies relevant to people of the African diaspora during her ethnographic research, she applied anthropological knowledge toward developing her own dance pedagogy (Dunham Technique) that worked to reconcile with the legacy of colonization and racism and correct sociocultural injustices. During this time, she developed a warm friendship with the psychologist and philosopher Erich Fromm, whom she had known in Europe. 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. Dunham continued to develop dozens of new productions during this period, and the company met with enthusiastic audiences in every city. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, . She also appeared in the Broadway musicals "Bal . [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. Dunham passed away on Sunday, May 21, 2006 at the age of 96. June 22 Dancer #4. THE DIGITAL REPOSITORY FOR THE BLACK EXPERIENCE. In 2000 Katherine Dunham was named America's irreplaceable Dance Treasure. 1910-2006. Among Dunham's closest friends and colleagues was Julie Robinson, formerly a performer with the Katherine Dunham Company, and her husband, singer and later political activist Harry Belafonte. Dunham's dance career first began in Chicago when she joined the Little Theater Company of Harper Avenue. informed by new methods of america's most highly regarded. Katherine Dunham (1909-2006) brought African dance aesthetics to the United States, forever influencing modern and jazz dance. The following year, she moved to East St. Louis, where she opened the Performing Arts Training Center to help the underserved community. She did this for many reasons. However, she did not seriously pursue a career in the profession until she was a student . [36] Her classes are described as a safe haven for many and some of her students even attribute their success in life to the structure and artistry of her technical institution. 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. In 1939, Dunham's company gave additional performances in Chicago and Cincinnati and then returned to New York. [6][10] While still a high school student, she opened a private dance school for young black children. Katherine returnedto to the usa in 1931 miss Dunham met one of. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. In 1963 Dunham was commissioned to choreograph Aida at New York's Metropolitan Opera Company, with Leontyne Price in the title role. Dunham had one of the most successful dance careers of the 20th century, and directed her own dance company for many years. Dunham, Katherine Mary (1909-2006) By Das, Joanna Dee. 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. Fun Facts. In 1967, Dunham opened the Performing Arts Training Center (PATC) in East St. Louis in an effort to use the arts to combat poverty and urban unrest. : Writings by and About Katherine Dunham. 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. She describes this during an interview in 2002: "My problemmy strong drive at that time was to remain in this academic position that anthropology gave me, and at the same time continue with this strong drive for motionrhythmic motion". She also continued refining and teaching the Dunham Technique to transmit that knowledge to succeeding generations of dance students. 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. Birth State: Alabama. After running it as a tourist spot, with Vodun dancing as entertainment, in the early 1960s, she sold it to a French entrepreneur in the early 1970s. In my mind, it's the most fascinating thing in the world to learn".[19]. The impresario Sol Hurok, manager of Dunham's troupe for a time, once had Ms. Dunham's legs insured for $250,000. Initially scheduled for a single performance, the show was so popular that the troupe repeated it for another ten Sundays. This was the beginning of more than 20 years during which Dunham performed with her company almost exclusively outside the United States. 8 Katherine Dunham facts. After the national tour of Cabin in the Sky, the Dunham company stayed in Los Angeles, where they appeared in the Warner Brothers short film Carnival of Rhythm (1941). In 1946, Dunham returned to Broadway for a revue entitled Bal Ngre, which received glowing notices from theater and dance critics. Dunham considered some really important and interesting issues, like how class and race issues translate internationally, being accepted into new communities, different types of being black, etc. ((Photographer unknown, Courtesy of Missouri History Museum Photograph and Prints collection. In response, the Afonso Arinos law was passed in 1951 that made racial discrimination in public places a felony in Brazil.[42][43][44][45][46][47]. 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. [52], On May 21, 2006, Dunham died in her sleep from natural causes in New York City. First Name Katherine #37. Katherine Dunham (1909-2006) By Halifu Osumare Katherine Dunham was a world famous dancer, choreographer, author, anthropologist, social activist, and humanitarian. American Anthropologist 122, no. [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. Dunham, who died at the age of 96 [in 2006], was an anthropologist and political activist, especially on behalf of the rights of black people. Dunham Company member Dana McBroom-Manno was selected as a featured artist in the show, which played on the Music Fair Circuit. At this time Dunham first became associated with designer John Pratt, whom she later married. While in Haiti, Dunham investigated Vodun rituals and made extensive research notes, particularly on the dance movements of the participants. 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. In 1947 it was expanded and granted a charter as the Katherine Dunham School of Cultural Arts. She was a pioneer of Dance Anthropology, established methodologies of ethnochoreology, and her work gives essential historical context to current conversations and practices of decolonization within and outside of the discipline of anthropology. According to the Katherine Dunham Centers for Arts and Humanities, Dunham never thought she'd have a career in dance, although she did study with ballerina and choreographer Ruth Page, among others. She made national headlines by staging a hunger strike to protest the U.S. governments repatriation policy for Haitian immigrants. "Katherine Dunham's Dance as Public Anthropology. In 1978 Dunham was featured in the PBS special, Divine Drumbeats: Katherine Dunham and Her People, narrated by James Earl Jones, as part of the Dance in America series. On one of these visits, during the late 1940s, she purchased a large property of more than seven hectares (approximately 17.3 acres) in the Carrefours suburban area of Port-au-Prince, known as Habitation Leclerc. It was considered one of the best learning centers of its type at the time. Her the best movie is Casbah. 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. In her biography, Joyce Aschenbrenner (2002), credits Ms Dunham as the "matriarch and queen mother of black dance", and describes her work as: "fundamentally . [2] Most of Dunham's works previewed many questions essential to anthropology's postmodern turn, such as critiquing understandings of modernity, interpretation, ethnocentrism, and cultural relativism. 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. Here are 10 facts about her fascinating life. Charm Dance from "L'Ag'Ya". For almost 30 years she maintained the Katherine Dunham Dance Company, the only self-supported American black dance troupe at that time. Unlike other modern dance creators who eschewed classical ballet, Dunham embraced it as a foundation for her technique. [13], Dunham officially joined the department in 1929 as an anthropology major,[13] while studying dances of the African diaspora. 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. 3 (1992): 24. Katherine Dunham. Tune in & learn about the inception of. In the 1930s, she did fieldwork in the Caribbean and infused her choreography with the cultures . Over the years Katherine Dunham has received scores of special awards, including more than a dozen honorary doctorates from various American universities. Admission is $10, or $5 for students and seniors, and hours are by appointment; call 618-875-3636, or 618-618-795-5970 three to five days in advance. 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. Receiving a post graduate academic fellowship, she went to the Caribbean to study the African diaspora, ethnography and local dance. ..American Anthropologist.. 112, no. All You Need to Know About Dunham Technique. There she was able to bring anthropologists, sociologists, educational specialists, scientists, writers, musicians, and theater people together to create a liberal arts curriculum that would be a foundation for further college work. In 1987 she received the Samuel H. Scripps American Dance Festival Award, and was also inducted into the. 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. "The Case for Letting Anthropology Burn: Sociocultural Anthropology in 2019." Please scroll down to enjoy more supporting materials. Katherine Mary Dunham (also known as Kaye Dunn, June 22, 1909 - May 21, 2006) was an American dancer, choreographer, author, educator, and social activist. In September 1943, under the management of the impresario Sol Hurok, her troupe opened in Tropical Review at the Martin Beck Theater. [22] [4], Katherine Mary Dunham was born on 22 June 1909 in a Chicago hospital. ", Black writer Arthur Todd described her as "one of our national treasures". This gained international headlines and the embarrassed local police officials quickly released her. Her field work in the Caribbean began in Jamaica, where she lived for several months in the remote Maroon village of Accompong, deep in the mountains of Cockpit Country. Katherine Dunham: The Artist as Activist During World War II. Katherine Dunham. It was a venue for Dunham to teach young black dancers about their African heritage. 2023 The HistoryMakers. Katherine Dunham PhB'36. Born in 1512 to Sir Thomas Parr, lord of the manor of Kendal in Westmorland, and Maud Green, an heiress and courtier, Catherine belonged to a family of substantial influence in the north. Her mother, Fanny June Dunham, who, according to Dunham's memoir, possessed Indian, French Canadian, English and probably African ancestry, died when Dunham was four years old. from the University of Chicago, she had acquired a vast knowledge of the dances and rituals of the Black peoples of tropical America. Katherine Dunham on dance anthropology. One of the most important dance artists of the twentieth century, dancer and choreographer Katherine Dunham (1909-2006) created works that thrilled audiences the world over. Episode 5 of Break the FACTS! Katherine Dunham, the dancer, choreographer, teacher and anthropologist whose pioneering work introduced much of the black heritage in dance to the stage, died Sunday at her home in Manhattan. In 1963, Dunham became the first African-American to choreograph for the Metropolitan Opera. Omissions? Katherine Dunham. Dunham was exposed to sacred ritual dances performed by people on the islands of Haiti and Jamaica. [3] She created many all-black dance groups. [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]. [14] Redfield, Herskovits, and Sapir's contributions to cultural anthropology, exposed Dunham to topics and ideas that inspired her creatively and professionally. Through much study and time, she eventually became one of the founders of the field of dance anthropology. 7 Katherine Dunham facts. Others who attended her school included James Dean, Gregory Peck, Jose Ferrer, Jennifer Jones, Shelley Winters, Sidney Poitier, Shirley MacLaine and Warren Beatty. Katherine Dunham is the inventor of the Dunham technique and a renowned dancer and choreographer of African-American descent. [50] Both Dunham and the prince denied the suggestion. Video. The show created a minor controversy in the press. This was followed by television spectaculars filmed in London, Buenos Aires, Toronto, Sydney, and Mexico City. Katherine Dunham, was published in a limited, numbered edition of 130 copies by the Institute for the Study of Social Change. Both remained close friends of Dunham for many years, until her death. However, one key reason was that she knew she would be able to reach a broader public through dance, as opposed to the inaccessible institutions of academia. Interesting facts. As a teenager, she won a scholarship to the Dunham school and later became a dancer with the company, before beginning her successful singing career. He was the founder of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York City. Additionally, she worked closely with Vera Mirova who specialized in "Oriental" dance. [54] Her legacy within Anthropology and Dance Anthropology continues to shine with each new day. Other Interesting Katherine Dunham Facts And Trivia 'Come Back To Arizona', a short story Katherine Dunham penned when she was 12 years old, was published in 1921 in volume two of 'The Brownies' Book'. The program included courses in dance, drama, performing arts, applied skills, humanities, cultural studies, and Caribbean research. Later in the year she opened a cabaret show in Las Vegas, during the first year that the city became a popular entertainment as well as gambling destination. Each procession builds on the last and focuses on conditioning the body to prepare for specific exercises that come later. Her many original works include Lagya, Shango and Bal Negre. From the beginning of their association, around 1938, Pratt designed the sets and every costume Dunham ever wore. . Among her dancers selected were Marcia McBroom, Dana McBroom, Jean Kelly, and Jesse Oliver. 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. [13] The Anthropology department at Chicago in the 1930s and 40s has been described as holistic, interdisciplinary, with a philosophy of liberal humanism, and principles of racial equality and cultural relativity.