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Items The early years: The context of Ruth St. Denis' choreography

The early years: The context of Ruth St. Denis' choreography

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LIBRARY DIVISION
Jerome Robbins Dance Division

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COLLECTION
Early Years Collection

This Item

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Title
The early years: The context of Ruth St. Denis' choreography
Names
Shelton, Suzanne (Speaker)
Sherman, Jane (Speaker)
Mumaw, Barton, 1912-2001 (Speaker)
Pinska, Klarna (Speaker)
Terry, Walter (Speaker)
Pennebaker, D. A. (Videographer)
Labeille, Daniel (Producer)
Ross, Patty Kerr (Director)
Early years, (1981 : Purchase, N.Y.) (Host)
State University of New York College at Purchase (Sponsor)
Collection

Early Years Collection

Dates / Origin
Date Created: 1981-04-09
Library locations
Jerome Robbins Dance Division
Shelf locator: *MGZIDF 3523
Shelf locator: *MGZIC 9-950 cassettes 11 and 12 (former)
Topics
St. Denis, Ruth, 1880-1968 -- Choreography
Shawn, Ted, 1891-1972
Denishawn Dancers
Ted Shawn and His Men Dancers
Genres
Lectures
Panel discussions
Notes
Content: For a printed program of the festival, see *MGZB The early years (1981 : Purchase, N.Y.) [Programs].
Content: Video documentation of the festival The early years: American modern dance from 1900 through the 1930s, hosted by SUNY College at Purchase, New York, on April 9-12, 1981, under the sponsorship of State University of New York, University-Wide Programs in the Arts. Festival director: Patricia Kerr Ross. Video producer: Daniel Labeille.
Content: Videotaped on April 9, 1981 by D. A. Pennebaker. Presentation on The context of Ruth St. Denis' choreography. Lectures by Suzanne Shelton and Jane Sherman, with brief commentaries by Barton Mumaw, Klarna Pinska, and Walter Terry. For another recording of this session, see: *MGZIC 9-950 cassette 21. CONTENTS: Cassette 11 (approx. 62 min.): Excerpt from Shelton's lecture (approx. 14 min.), covering the cult of Orientalism in America at the turn of the century and its influence on St. Denis' work. She also discusses St. Denis' career prior to the creation of Radha in 1926. For the first part of her lecture, see: *MGZIC 9-950 cassette 21. -- Sherman's lecture (approx. 22 min.) corrects the misconception that the Denishawn company lacked technique by examining typical classes at the Denishawn school, the writings of St. Denis and Ted Shawn, their studies with native teachers of ethnic dance, and the atmosphere of intellectual curiosity that they fostered among their students. She draws many examples from her own experiences as a member of the Denishawn company. -- Panel presentation by Mumaw and Pinska (approx. 26 min.). Mumaw discusses the attitudes towards and opportunities for male dancers in his youth, and reminisces about his experiences as a member of Ted Shawn and His Men Dancers. The opening of his talk is cut off; a full version of his remarks appears on: *MGZIC 9-950 cassette 21. -- Pinska recalls her first contacts with St. Denis in 1914, at the age of 8, when she auditioned for the company. -- Cassette 12 (approx. 14 min.): Conclusion of panel presentation. Terry recalls his first view of St. Denis in 1938, and tells anecdotes drawn from his long friendship with her, highlighting her sense of humor and profundity. The opening of his talk is cut off; a full version appears on: *MGZIC 9-950 cassette 21.
Physical Description
Videocassette
Extent: 4 videocassette (U-matic) (76 min.) : sound, color ; 3/4 in.
Type of Resource
Moving image
Languages
English
Identifiers
NYPL catalog ID (B-number): b12170822
Universal Unique Identifier (UUID): 333ce2c0-3144-0132-b540-3c075448cc4b
Rights Statement
The copyright and related rights status of this item has been reviewed by The New York Public Library, but we were unable to make a conclusive determination as to the copyright status of the item. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use.

Item timeline of events

  • 1981: Created
  • 2024: Found by you!
  • 2025

MLA Format

Jerome Robbins Dance Division, The New York Public Library. "The early years: The context of Ruth St. Denis' choreography" The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1981. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/3446de40-3144-0132-f3a2-3c075448cc4b

Chicago/Turabian Format

Jerome Robbins Dance Division, The New York Public Library. "The early years: The context of Ruth St. Denis' choreography" New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed April 27, 2024. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/3446de40-3144-0132-f3a2-3c075448cc4b

APA Format

Jerome Robbins Dance Division, The New York Public Library. (1981). The early years: The context of Ruth St. Denis' choreography Retrieved from https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/3446de40-3144-0132-f3a2-3c075448cc4b

Wikipedia Citation

<ref name=NYPL>{{cite web | url=https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/3446de40-3144-0132-f3a2-3c075448cc4b | title= (moving image) The early years: The context of Ruth St. Denis' choreography, (1981)|author=Digital Collections, The New York Public Library |accessdate=April 27, 2024 |publisher=The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox, and Tilden Foundations}}</ref>

The early years: The context of Ruth St. Denis' choreography