Lester Horton was an American dancer, choreographer, and teacher. Born January 23, 1906 in Indianapolis, Indiana and died on November 2, 1953 in Los Angeles, California. Lester Horton was born into a working-class family. He was the son of Iradell and Pollyanna Horton. His passions for dance was aroused by his very own American Indian culture in the wake of watching tribal dances. Lester Horton was one of the few pioneers of modern dance who made sacrifices in order to bring black dancers to the concert stages. Although, he was not black, his choreography and work had a significant influence on artists of the African Diaspora. Lester Horton’s goal was to create a dance technique that was anatomically corrective and utilized the widest …show more content…
They were able to perform this piece at the Argus bowl in Eagle Rock, California in 1929. This work put Horton on the dance map while still a teenager. Lester Horton decided to live and work in Los Angeles that led to him finally creating a name for not only himself, but his choreography and technique.
Lester Horton is mainly known for his development of modern technique known as the “Horton Technique”. Which often resembles Alvin Ailey’s choreography. “It is marked by strong thrust of extended arms, legs, and torso; broad strokes of the body in space; hips used as accents and motivators; lungs and deep second-position plies that emphasize power and space; swings of the legs and torsos, leaps, and jumps into space.” The Horton Technique consolidates a few social components, for example, Afro-Caribbean components which clarify the hip development, or hip circles and Japanese arm signals which clarifies the straight arms and Native American society move which may clarify the sort of music use to move to. The strategy underscores an entire body, anatomical way to deal with that incorporates adaptability, quality, and coordination for sound. The strongholds are viewed as the center of Horton procedure. They build up a system of development mechanics, of strong advancement and coordination, versatility and range. Horton system concentrates on the utilization of tilt lines, jumps and straight lines all
Influenced primarily by cultural roots and incredibly opportunity, Dunham had the luxury of studying in the West Indies as well as anthropological study of other cultural style dances. The West Indian experience changed forever the focus of Dunham’s life and caused a profound shift in her career. This initial fieldwork began a lifelong involvement with the people and dance of Haiti. And, importantly for the development of modern dance, her fieldwork began her investigations into a vocabulary of movement that would form the core of the Katherine Dunham Technique. Though many of Dunham’s primary influences lies within her multicultural experiences, Mark Turbyfill also seemed to play a large role in her future dance career, giving her private lessons despite his doubt in the opening of her student company (Kaiso! 187). Katherine Dunham has been list as an influence to “everyone from George Balanchine to Jerome Robbins, Alvin Ailey, Bob Fosse and Twyla Tharp. American dance, including ballet, modern dance, Hollywood and Broadway, would not be the same without her” (Aschenbrenner 226).
Tap dance is an uniquely American dance form. The percussive use of one’s feet combined with the use of rhythms and amplification of sound, has a complex history that involves the intercultural fusions of English, Irish and African musical and dance traditions. The evolution of tap dance in America is further complicated by issues of race, class and gender. Unlike ballet with its formal technique, tap dance emerged from people listening to and watching each other dance, in a variety of settings, where steps were shared, stolen and reinvented. Through its metamorphosis the dance form has progressed from local entertainment, to Vaudeville shows, to Broadway shows, to the Silver Screen and to Concert Halls across the world. The legacy of the art form is characterized by the rise, fall and reemergence of popularity. Savion Glover, a 21st century American dancer, is credited with bringing tap into a new era of popularity as he has wowed the masses with his unique style focusing on African American rhythms. Tap dance, uniquely American in that it is a true melting pot of dance forms, is a dance form rich in rhythms, sounds and amplifications and has transcended social and cultural barriers.
Bradley also owned a dance studio called the San Pedro Ballet School. After seeing Copeland’s talent, Bradley offered to give her a full scholarship at her studio. Because it was so hard for Copeland to get to and from classes, she eventually moved in with the Bradley family. She was now able to devote more time to her dancing.
Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born January 31, 1919. He was born in Cairo, Georgia and was the youngest of five children. He had a grandfather that was a slave, Jackie’s dad was a sharecropper and Mallie, Jackie’s mother, was a maid. His dad ran away from the family when Jackie was only an infant.
Alvin Ailey was an accomplished dancer and choreographer whose African-American heritage influenced his works in the 20th century. His successful dance career has gained international recognition and acclaim thus rendering a significant legacy. Ailey’s background as a dancer and choreographer had many strong influences from social, cultural, economic and political aspects during his early life. His African-American heritage has greatly influenced his works. Alvin was the founder of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (1958-), galvanized and stabilized an African American presence in theatrical dance. An outstanding performer, choreographer, company director, and mentor to scores of dance artists, Ailey oversaw the growth of his small, pick-up group of seven dancers into a large, carefully managed, internationally-renowned enterprise including several ensembles of dancers and a thriving school in New York City housed in the largest building devoted to dance in the United States. Along the way, Ailey changed the landscape of modern dance by developing new audiences for its performance through a consistent combination of exceptional artistry and wellcoordinated community outreach programs. In all, Ailey invigorated the art of dance with his distinctive creative imagination, his “blood memories” of cultural formations he witnessed as a child-- including the jook joint and the black church --and the strong survivalist ethic he learned as an African American man born in the
We also see jazzy stepball changes in both pieces and in ‘For Bird with Love’ we see Horton’s splayed hands technique.
Alvin Ailey, a well known second generation American choreographer and activist was born in Rogers, Texas on January 5, 1931. Ailey grew up poor in the small Texas town of Navasota. Although he did not have much growing up, it did not stop his drive to succeed. He became inspired by attending black church services and by the music he heard at the local dance hall. Because of this, Ailey left Texas at the young age of 12 and moved to Los Angeles. While in Los Angeles, Ailey excelled in different subjects such as language and athletics. He became inspired to pursue dancing after seeing the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo perform. In 1949, at the age of 18, he began to study modern dance with Lester Horton and joined Horton’s dance company the following year. Horton became Ailey 's major influence, as he was his mentor that gave him a foundation and technique that allowed him to grow artistically. Even though he developed his own style, he still used Horton’s technique that emphasized a strong fluid torso and ease of movement. In his years to follow, Ailey founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York in 1958. Ailey’s dance company became very popular because of its multi-racial modern dance ensemble. Due to his modern, jazz and ethnic dance styles, and extensive world tours, Alvin Ailey became one of the leading figures in the 20th century modern dance, making modern dance popular all over the world. Ailey is a significant artist to me because he paved the way for
In Hope of Liberty embodies a very thorough and complex narrative of Northern free blacks. James Oliver Horton and Lois E. Horton deliver to readers a detailed synthesis of several decades of information that pertains to early American history. The text ventures through social, political, and cultural movements that were occurring before the Civil War era. The Hortons not only demonstrate the importance of black’s presence throughout the text but some of the contribution and the roles that led to such a vibrant culture in America. It 's through the analysis of these wonderful sources and experience of free black Northerners, that reader and historians can have a better interpretation and revision of the building of this early nation.
Many people have been born that have struck a chord with the world. Some people have become legends, patriots and even heroes. Though one person stood out among the rest, this one was not made a hero, but was born to be one. He was a hero at what he strived to be in life and he has captured the attention of the public like no other solider has done before or since. This great Canadian Air Force Ace became one of the legendary figures in 20th century air warfare. With his daring and dramatic dogfights in France, he achieved a record of 72 kills in his many encounters. His role on the ground during the Second World War training pilots changed and inspired a whole new generation of fighter pilots. This man is known
Who was George Rogers Clark? This is probably a question most people in America couldn't answer. The reason is very simple, George Rogers Clark was a hero in an age of heroism. He simply could not compare with the legends of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and other Revolutionary War heroes. Clark nevertheless is very important, especially to the people of Kentucky, Illinois, and Indiana who became apart of the United States of America because of his great leadership and bravery in military campaigns at Kaskaskia, Illinois and Vincennes, Indiana during the Revolutionary War.
Robinson had no doubts that he was the best at what he did, a self-confidence that some took to be arrogance and that was mixed with a sometimes brooding depression at the fact that, because he was black, he had to wait until he was in his sixties before he could enjoy the fame and fortune given to less talented white dancers. In fact, he appears to have been a remarkably generous man and in addition to his massive workload, he never refused to appear at a benefit for those artists who were less successful or ailing. It has been estimated that in one year he appeared in a staggering 400 benefits. In 1930 Robinson had made a film, DIXIANA, but it was not until he went to Hollywood in the middle of the decade that he made a breakthrough in this medium.
It was a hot blistering summer day not a leaf in sight or a hint of shade to be found. Mouth is dry as cotton from thirst and hands bleeding and blistering from a hard days work, exhausted from fatigue and hunger, because Master had me out here since the crack of dawn. Tending to the crops in the field and told me not come until every last crop has been tended which is about three football fields long. This is some of the Vigorous work that slaves had to endure. Slavery is a big part of American history. Many of the African Americans you see today are descendants of the 500,000 plus Africans who were sent to North America as slaves. To work
Alonzo King began dancing at a young age in Santa Barbara, California. He continued his training in New York at the Harkness
As a child, Lester Hortons was very interested in Native American culture. He spent his adolescent years studying Indian folktale, visiting Indian burial mounds, and writing about his interests in the culture (Perces 4). Horton’s fascination with dance stemmed back to the viewing of his first performance by The Denishawn Dancers (Perces 4). Modern dancers, Ted Shawn and Ruth St. Dennis included Indian, Siamese, Japanese, Javanaes, and Egyptian dance styles in the performance. This medley of cultural dance styles heightened Horton’s interest in dance an died to his study of ballet, Greek dance, and modern dance (Peres 4). Horton began his training in ballet and Greek dance, but became dissatisfied with ballet. After suspending his ballet training, Horton
Sally Banes is an American writer and dance historian and critic. She is also a professor of theater history and dance studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Banes has written multiple books and contributed to many documentaries and films. The book Moving History / Dancing Cultures, which Banes contributed to, includes the article “Choreographic Methods of the Judson Dance Theater”. This book was published in 2001.