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Gifted Danseuse Scores Triumph in Negro Ballet
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| Title | Gifted Danseuse Scores Triumph in Negro Ballet |
| Creator | Daly, Geraldine |
| Description | Rave review of ballet/dance recital given by Katherine Dunham and her troupe. Katherine Dunham returned to former high school for ballet sponsored by the Business and Professional Woman's club. Some description of performance given. |
| Collection | SCRC Text (Southern Illinois University Carbondale) |
| Subcollection | Katherine Dunham Papers |
| Place Written | [Joliet, IL?] |
| Date(s) | [1939?]-01-20 |
| Subjects -people | Dunham, Katherine ; Dunham, Albert M. (Mr. and Mrs.) ; Beatty, Talley ; Carmella ; Brooks, Margaret ; Jackson, Coclough ; McLaurin, Roberta ; Hank, Charles ; Hyman, Jules ; Hastings, Willard ; Nielsen, Mildred (accompanist) |
| Other topics | Business and Professional Women's Club of Joliet |
| Collection ID/Box# | FP20_7_F1DUNHAM_B102_F05_05 |
| Rights Statement | For permission to reproduce, distribute, or otherwise use this image, please contact the Special Collections Research Center, Morris Library, Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Phone: + 1 (618) 453-2516. Email: http://reftrack.lib.siu.edu/reft100.aspx?key=SCRCEmail&cllcid=SCRR |
| Transcript | Gifted Danseuse Scores Triumph in Negro Ballet
By GERAIjDINB DALY.
Joliet high school's most il¬ lustrious alumna came homei last night, to receive the plaudits j of her schoolmates, teachers and neighbors in one of the most whimsical dance recitals ever presented on a Joliet stage.
She was Miss Katherine Dun¬ ham, No. 1 colored danseuse. wiio submitted her folk-ballet in' an entertainment called *Trop- icH" in the auditorium of the
the group sympathetically grasp-j Marga.^t Brooks Coclo^^^^^^^
ed the symbolism of the meas¬ ured movement of the tropics
son. Roberta McLaurin Charles Hank, Jules Hyman and WiUard
ured movement of ttie tropica "*^'^'^' , , -"^ ^^iiHrf^rf Nielsea
and exhibited the muscle con- Hastings. Miss Mildred Nielsea
trol clothed in abandon.which was accompanist.
marks the primitive dance, ^ ev^j -i'-
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high school where only a few short years ago ahe received her diplomas as high school and Junior college graduate. She is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs, Al¬ bert M. Dunham, TI2 South Jo¬ liet street and to an enthusiastic audience of her own people and of others of the community, she brought the spirit of the prim¬ itive folk below the equator. The program under the auspices of the Johet Business and Profes¬ sional Woman's club raised a substantial sum for the organ¬ ization's educational fund which assists young women to com¬ plete their high school courses. |
A Tropi -al Pattern,
Traditional folk dances formed the basis for the demonstration of which Miss Dunham was the clever choreograph. The cease¬ less rhythms of the indies, an¬ aesthetic interpretation of the emotions of the natives, their reactions raised to a dignified ai"t, their child-like spirit cap¬ tured, now in naive, now in so¬ phisticated steps, were M'oven into the tropical patterns re¬ vealed for the first time to a Joliet audience.
In typical costumes, the im¬ pressions and realities of Cu- bans executing the rhumba, of a Peruvian woman on the jun¬ gle slopes of the Andes, of the 1820 Queen of Haiti, and of the lotus eaters, were vividly por¬ trayed by Miss Dunham and her group, who profited by a year and a half study of the dances at their source, made by the Jo¬ liet young woman.
One of the most pleasing re¬ velations was Miss Dunham's faithful dramatization of a little "porteuse" a tot in' a basket of pineapples on her head, and wearing the rustling flowered satins of the Empress Josephine period, stopping on her dust.^ trek to a rendezvous with lover, to dance a few w steps to the natij^-^'bi?^*^ Coy, charming, child-like. *P.''^ shoes set aside for the int^^ icatlng moments of the solo dance. Miss Dunham projected the simple, sweet, elemental na¬ ture of the rhythm-loving na¬ tive girl in a new and refresh¬ ing approach.
Like Giant Spiders^
Suppleness characterized the entire cast whose muscles from tip to toe seemed to ripple in.kccord with the tom-toms, the hand clappings, the castanets and the native Instruments whose recordings accompanied the steps. Like giant tarantulas, slithering thru weird cadences,
The group probably reached its most spectacular peak in its! closing presentation of Harl Mc¬ Donalds Rhumba from his rhumba symphony- Tn a sophis¬ ticated setting, the cast exemp¬ lified the depth of meaning and the charm of movement in the colorful rhumba.
Miss Dunham responded gra¬ ciously to a series of curtain calls at the close of the recital
attended by one of the largest audiences ever seated in the au¬ ditorium. The dancer was hon¬ ored following the performance by her parents who entertained in their home.
Members of the group accom¬ panying Miss Dunham last night were Tal ley Beatty, Carmella,
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-i..fl-.rvv:
school where her initj
in dan-r-ng was fos
savs, by the physical
department. Miss Dul
turning to her old he
^ first time with her b
she will present m n
dances based upon
vear and a half at t^
The first day's ticl^
tlon yesterday evid
Pancc Recital In^^^^^^y[which will be set Night to Attract Capacity Crowd.
TICKET SELLOUT INDlCftTED FOR DUNHAM BALLET
scenery and wdl 1
with native accom;
For Educdtlon
proceeds itom tl" :¦¦ indication, of a -mpie^ -" ent will be u.ed ^ out for the d.nce re-ta' " 1^-- a^.^^ ^^^, ^^^.„^ Katherine Dunham and ballet ^^^ ^^^^^ j, ^^, ^ , , een Thursday night in the Joliet high j„ ^phool, a special Bchool audicorium, were indicat-..ightly advanced
**'T^iekets will remain on sale as j^e box office long as they last, first come ^^^^^^ ^^^ 1, ^ ope
txrst ^^¦¦-^^.^^'"^.f^rrMgh Uons today, to the reservations at *^^ "'fj" Thursday. Hours , chool box office, officers an- Thurs^ , ^ ^^^ ^^
tiouneed. ^ noon and 3:30
, Attended S^^^""\"f;;i, ig^ the afternoon.
1 'A former pupil of i^he nig |
| Original Format | review |
| Original dimensions (cm.) | 27 X 17 |
| Digital Object Type | Image |
| Digital File Format | .tif |
| Digital File Publisher | Special Collections Research Center, Morris Library, Southern Illinois University Carbondale. |
| Language | English |
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