She also continued refining and teaching the Dunham Technique to transmit that knowledge to succeeding generations of dance students. 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. 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. [1] She is best known for bringing African and Caribbean dance styles to the US. Katherine Dunham and John Pratt married in 1949 to adopt Marie-Christine, a French 14-month-old baby. Later Dunham established a second home in Senegal, and she occasionally returned there to scout for talented African musicians and dancers. Jeff Dunham hails from Dallas, Texas. 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 . Years later, after extensive studies and initiations in Haiti,[21] she became a mambo in the Vodun religion. In 1949, Dunham returned from international touring with her company for a brief stay in the United States, where she suffered a temporary nervous breakdown after the premature death of her beloved brother Albert. One recurring theme that I really . 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. She wrote that he "opened the floodgates of anthropology" for her. Glory Van Scott and Jean-Lon Destin were among other former Dunham dancers who remained her lifelong friends. 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. Text:. 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. Dunham became interested in both writing and dance at a young age. Katherine Dunham, was published in a limited, numbered edition of 130 copies by the Institute for the Study of Social Change. This was followed by television spectaculars filmed in London, Buenos Aires, Toronto, Sydney, and Mexico City. Othella Dallas, 93, still teaches Katherine Dunham technique, which she learned from Dunham herself. In August she was awarded a bachelor's degree, a Ph.B., bachelor of philosophy, with her principal area of study being social anthropology. In addition, Dunham conducted special projects for African American high school students in Chicago; was artistic and technical director (196667) to the president of Senegal; and served as artist-in-residence, and later professor, at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, and director of Southern Illinoiss Performing Arts Training Centre and Dynamic Museum in East St. Louis, Illinois. She is a celebrity dancer. Katherine Dunham or the "Matriarch of Black Dance'' as many called her, was a revolutionary African American anthropologist and professional dancer. As Wendy Perron wrote, "Jazz dance, 'fusion,' and the search for our cultural identity all have their antecedents in Dunham's work as a dancer, choreographer, and anthropologist. Lyndon B. Johnson was in the audience for opening night. [35] In a different interview, Dunham describes her technique "as a way of life,[36]" a sentiment that seems to be shared by many of her admiring students. Classes are led by Ruby Streate, director of dance and education and artistic director of the Katherine Dunham Children's Workshop. Dunham was active in human rights causes, and in 1992 she staged a 47-day hunger strike to highlight the plight of Haitian refugees. From the solar system to the world economy to educational games, Fact Monster has the info kids are seeking. [6][10] While still a high school student, she opened a private dance school for young black children. 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. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Her father was given a number of important positions at court . Based on her research in Martinique, this three-part performance integrated elements of a Martinique fighting dance into American ballet. (Below are 10 Katherine Dunham quotes on positivity. She did not complete the other requirements for that degree, however, as she realized that her professional calling was performance and choreography. Tune in & learn about the inception of. Despite these successes, the company frequently ran into periods of financial difficulties, as Dunham was required to support all of the 30 to 40 dancers and musicians. [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 was exposed to sacred ritual dances performed by people on the islands of Haiti and Jamaica. One of the most significant dancers, artists, and anthropologic figures of the 20th century, Katherine Dunham defied racial and gender boundaries during a . 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. As I document in my book Katherine Dunham: Dance and the . 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. Her work inspired many. At this time Dunham first became associated with designer John Pratt, whom she later married. In the summer of 1941, after the national tour of Cabin in the Sky ended, they went to Mexico, where inter-racial marriages were less controversial than in the United States, and engaged in a commitment ceremony on 20 July, which thereafter they gave as the date of their wedding. Facts about Alvin Ailey talk about the famous African-American activist and choreographer. In 1976, Dunham was guest artist-in-residence and lecturer for Afro-American studies at the University of California, Berkeley. Gender: Female. At the time, the South Side of Chicago was experiencing the effects of the Great Migration were Black southerners attempted to escape the Jim Crow South and poverty. Johnson 's gift for numbers allowed her to accelerate through her education. 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. Katherine Dunham (1909-2006) is revered as one of the great pillars of American dance history. They had particular success in Denmark and France. 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. Her fieldwork inspired her innovative interpretations of dance in the Caribbean, South America, and Africa. 8 Katherine Dunham facts. The family moved to Joliet, Illinois when her father remarried. 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]. Writings by and about Katherine Dunham" , Katherine Dunham, 2005. Katherine returnedto to the usa in 1931 miss Dunham met one of. Alumnae include Eartha Kitt, Marlon Brando and Julie Belafonte. As this show continued its run at the Windsor Theater, Dunham booked her own company in the theater for a Sunday performance. Fun Facts. Katherine Dunham always had an interest in dance and anthropology so her main goal in life was to combine them. [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. By the time she received an M.A. In the mid-1930s she conducted anthropological research on dance and incorporated her findings into her choreography, blending the rhythms and movements of . Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Her alumni included many future celebrities, such as Eartha Kitt. Cruz Banks, Ojeya. [54] Her dance education, while offering cultural resources for dealing with the consequences and realities of living in a racist environment, also brought about feelings of hope and dignity for inspiring her students to contribute positively to their own communities, and spreading essential cultural and spiritual capital within the U.S.[54], Just like her colleague Zora Neale Hurston, Dunham's anthropology inspired the blurring of lines between creative disciplines and anthropology. 47 Copy quote. From the 40s to the 60s, Dunham and her dance troupe toured to 57 countries of the world. These exercises prepare the dancers for African social and spiritual dances[31] that are practiced later in the class including the Mahi,[32] Yonvalou,[33] and Congo Paillette. [15] It was in a lecture by Redfield that she learned about the relationship between dance and culture, pointing out that Black Americans had retained much of their African heritage in dances. 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. Through her ballet teachers, she was also exposed to Spanish, East Indian, Javanese, and Balinese dance forms.[23]. 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. [54] This wave continued throughout the 1990s with scholars publishing works (such as Decolonizing Anthropology: Moving Further in Anthropology for Liberation,[55] Decolonizing Methodologies,[56] and more recently, The Case for Letting Anthropology Burn[57]) that critique anthropology and the discipline's roles in colonial knowledge production and power structures. Throughout her distinguished career, Dunham earned numerous honorary doctorates, awards and honors. 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 a rebel among rebels. . It was a venue for Dunham to teach young black dancers about their African heritage. In 1938 she joined the Federal Theatre Project in Chicago and composed a ballet, LAgYa, based on Caribbean dance. 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). During this time, she developed a warm friendship with the psychologist and philosopher Erich Fromm, whom she had known in Europe. [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. Featuring lively Latin American and Caribbean dances, plantation dances, and American social dances, the show was an immediate success. 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. Although Dunham was offered another grant from the Rockefeller Foundation to pursue her academic studies, she chose dance. ", 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. - Pic Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images. "Katherine Dunham: Decolonizing Anthropology through African American Dance Pedagogy."