Naomi Lang Research Paper

Her student dance company was founded in 1931, “Ballet Negre” and awarded a Rosenwald Travel Fellowship in 1936 for her combined expertise in dance and anthropology. While studying with Ludmilla Speranzeva and Mark

She’s just a girl who had won over 14 champion medals. Who is that you are probably wondering. Well “that girl” is Simone Biles. Biles won over 10 gold medals in the sport of gymnastics. Some people say that simone can do tumbling passes on the balance beam that some olympians can’t even do on floor. Some say that is true some say that is false.

Have you ever thought what it would be like to be dancing up on your toes with the American Ballet theatre (ABT)? That’s just what happened, Misty Copeland currently a principal dancer at ABT had a dream to dance there ever since she started to dance and she didn't think that she could do it,but with training, hard work, and passion you can achieve anything. For the month of September I decided to read “Life in Motion” written by Misty Copeland. This book was very inspiring in many ways. I learned so much that I didn’t know, not only about Misty Copeland but also about ballet. I decided to read this book because, Misty Copeland is one of my idols, she is also a big inspiration and I really wanted to learn more about her. Overall this book was amazing. I would recommend it to  not only ballet dancers but to also people who love non-fiction because it is full of so many details and a lot of imagery that it makes a person feel like they are in her shoes dancing through her life. I would recommend this book because many people can relate to Misty Copeland in many ways, your mind wanders while reading, and because the plot was very unbelievable and surprising.

She expresses that like most Canadians, regardless of race, gender, or faith, she grew up with an intense passion for hockey: both watching and playing. Khan describes the obstacles and lack of outlets available for female hockey enthusiasts during her youth but, goes

The light shine down and the music surrounds her as she dance into the air and across the stage. The audience yells and clap for her as the curtain close. It’s the end of another work week for Jane Onwuegbuchu. Jane comes from a very huge family of 8, where it’s very hard for her to be at the center of attention, especially being the 5th child. Jane was born in Houston, Texas on June 22, 1987 to Rosaline and James Onwuegbuchu. She started dancing at the young age of 3 with Elite dancers and fell in love with dancing since then. “Growing up as a child, Jane was a very good child, she loved dancing and just seeing her dance melt my heart. She was a part of a lot of dance organization, church, youth dance team etc… You name it and she was there,”

Debbie Allen was born to Vivian Ayers and Arthur Allen on January 16, 1950. At age three she started dancing and at age four she knew she wanted to be a professional dancer. Her parents divorced in 1957, and her mother was Debbie and her siblings were encouraged to be creative and independent. In 1960, Vivian Ayers took her children to Mexico. When they came back to Texas, Debbie auditioned for the Houston Ballet School but was denied because the color of her skin. A Russian teacher at the school saw Debbie perform and secretly enrolled her. When she was sixteen, she auditioned for the North Carolina School of the Arts but was rejected because her body was “unsuited” for ballet. While she was in high school she put her studies first and went

Kate Kimball is an award-winning fiction author who has worked hard to be in the position she is in now. Despite currently struggling with her health, she has continued to peruse her English PhD in Creative Writing here at Florida State University. Born in beautiful Salt Lake City, Utah Kimball is surprised to find herself over 2,000 miles away now studying in the sunshine state. FSU offers one of the top creative writing programs that currently is ranked top 5 in the nation according to The Atlantic Monthly. Kimball was excited to be accepted into the accredited program after earning her bachelor’s from the University of Utah and masters at Virginia Tech. Kimball has always loved writing and says, “Creative writing allows you to write about

As ballets were about telling stories or formulating movements, modern dance broke the rules and started to focus more on individual expressions. Loie Fuller (1862 – 1928), Doris Humphrey (1895-1958), and Ruth St. Denis (1877-1968) were pioneering women who took a stand and used their dance performance to speak up for women’s rights. Using dance, they significantly contributed to the Feminist movement in which they embraced self-expression and creativity so that women could be acknowledged in the dance field and in the society as a whole. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, they found for women’s rights by “taking dance to a new form, and creating dances to speak directly and intimately to the viewer” (Au 89). Loie Fuller, Doris Humphrey, and Ruth St. Denis demonstrated the transformation of dance with their innovation of costumes and stage lighting, incorporation of foreign cultures into performance, and creation of natural movements and individual expression that rejected the formal structures of ballet to deform a woman’s body, allowing women to be free from stereotype of a traditional woman.

Cassie Dawin Campbell was born on November 22, 1973 in Richmond hill, Ontario, Canada. In the early 1990’s she was a defensemen in hockey and was the captain for the University of Guelph’s team. During the time that Cassie played for this team she took them to a collegiate championship in 1995. She was also a member of the Canadian women’s national ice hockey team, and played for both teams respectively at the same time. She won her first international gold medal at the World Championships in 1994, and after she graduated university with a degree in sociology, she won her second gold medal at the 1997 World Championships.

When Heather’s mom attempted to explain the concepts of rhythm and pronunciation, and failed she thought dance class would help. She was enrolled her in ballet class in hopes (of ) that she would develop a better understanding of rhythm. Not long after joining, the love she had for ballet grew and she continued to dance until she danced herself all the way the to the Miss America competition. Heather started her career in beauty pageants in the Shelby County Junior Miss program. Although the Shelby County Junior program wasn’t considered an actual pageant it gave Heather the confidence she needed to start entering real ones. She entered many pageants and won Miss Cullman Area in 1994. After she won Miss Cullman she went on to win Miss Alabama and soon enough it was only her and Miss Virginia standing up in the finals for Miss America and it was then announced she had won. Each competition she entered helped to shape and mold the way Heather interacted the judges. “The first time I stood on the stage in Atlantic City and looked out over the empty convention about a year before I won the Miss America title, I was amazed not at its size, but at the fact that I was there. The journey to the Miss America Pageant did not begin four years ago when I first competed in a local pageant. It began when I was eighteen months old, when I lost my hearing.” -Heather Whitestone. Heather said that when her mom was told her daughter was

On July 4, 1954, Marilyn Sheppard was murdered in her home on the shore of Lake Erie. Sam Sheppard, the husband, denied any involvement in the murder but was presumed the killer.

“Go within everyday and find the inner strength so that the world will not blow your candle out” (A Quote by Katherine Dunham 1). Once one of the most successful dancers in both American and European theater, Katherine Dunham, a dancer, anthropologist,social activist,and educator, continues to inspire people throughout the world. Named America’s irreplaceable Dance Treasure in 2000. Dunham remains a name heard regularly in dance schools across the world (“Katherine Dunham Biography” 4). She is known for always trying to make a difference and in the process she has become of the world’s greatest humanitarians (Osumare 5). Katherine Dunham’s work in African American rights in the dance world and her creation of new styles of dance makes her an important figure in American dance History.

Ruth Denis was born on the 20th of January, 1879 on a family farm located in Newark, New Jersey. Ruth lived with both her two parents, Ruth’s father was a persistently unemployed machinist. Ruth St Denis’s mother (Ruth Emma Denis) on the other hand was a physician, renowned for being Ruth’s motivation. She taught Ruth the basic foundations of ballroom and skirt dancing and at the age of 10, Ruth performed her first solo performance produced by her mother. Denis then began truly committed herself to dance, including training of Delsarte technique, ballet lessons with the Italian ballerina Maria Bonfante, social dance forms and skirt dancing.

Holding Onto the Air an autobiography by Suzanne Farrell takes the reader backstage in the dramatic life of the world-renowned Balanchine ballerina. From her childhood in Cincinnati to her retirement from ballet in 1989, Farrell's story is truly a remarkable one. The book describes at length her time with the New York City Ballet as well as her complex relationship with the legendary Balanchine. Although Mrs. Farrell goes a bit too far into the ballet descriptions, her beautiful imagery allows reader to experience the joy of performing on stage.

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