Ruth St. Denis

Ruth St. Denis

After seeing an image of the Egyptian god Isis in a cigarette ad, St. Denis began to investigate Asian dance. She and her husband, Ted Shawn, were known for their "oriental" productions.

Ruth St. Denis (January 20, 1879 – July 21, 1968) was an early modern dance pioneer.

Ruth St. Denis founded Adelphi University's dance program in 1938 which was the one of the first dance departments in an American university. It has since become a cornerstone of Adelphi's Department of Performing Arts.

Her early works are indicative of her interests in exotic mysticism and spirituality. Many companies currently include a collection of her signature solos in their repertoires, including the programme, “The Art of the Solo,” a showcase of famous solos of modern dance pioneers. Several early St. Denis solos (including “Incense” and ”The Legend of the Peacock”) were presented on September 29, 2006, at the Baltimore Museum of Art. A centennial salute was scheduled with the revival premiere of St. Denis' "Radha," commissioned by Countess Anastasia Thamakis of Greece. The program's director, Mino Nicolas, has been instrumental in the revival of these key solos.

One of her more famous pupils was Martha Graham, who attended Ms. St. Denis' school of dance, Denishawn, that she had started with her husband, Ted Shawn. Doris Humphrey and Charles Weidman also studied at Denishawn, and Graham, Humphrey, Weidman and the future silent film star Louise Brooks all performed as dancers with the Denishawn company. Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn were also instrumental in creating the legendary dance festival, Jacob's Pillow.

For many years, Denis taught dance at a studio in Hollywood, California just north of the Hollywood Bowl. In 1963 she teamed with Raymond DeArmond Bowman to bring the first full-length Balinese Shadow Puppet play to the United States. The performance was held at her studio and lasted more than 8 hours.

See also

• Sada Yacco

References

• Chapter 2: The Solo Dancers: Ruth St. Denis (1879-1968) from "The Early Moderns Web Tutorial" at the University of Pittsburgh
• Jacob's Pillow Dance festival
• A collection of Ruth St. Denis photographs from The New York Public Library Archive Uploaded December 15th, 2008

Books

• St. Denis, Ruth. An Unfinished Life: an Autobiography. Dance Horizons Republication, Brooklyn, New York, 1969.

• Schlundt, Christena L. Into the mystic with Miss Ruth. Dance Perspectives Foundation,1971

• Terry, Walter.Miss Ruth: the "more living life" of Ruth St. Denis.Dodd, Mead, New York,1969