National Museum of Dance

We all understand how challenging 2020 has been but we take this time to be grateful and reflect on the positives. Stay hopeful for the future, there is more dancing to be done! Wishing everyone a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

Tour Tuesday 18 Today, Mary Anne Fantauzzi introduces us to the American writer, visionary, impresario, art connoisseur, and philanthropist Lincoln Kirstein. Perhaps he is best remembered as the one responsible for bringing George Balanchine to America and changing the face of ballet from classically Romantic to neoclassical. Please visit our website to view all of our Tour Tuesday Installments at https://www.nationalmuseumofdance.org/tour-tuesday... https://vimeo.com/482790056 #TourTuesday #nationalmuseumofdance #dancemuseum

This week, Docent Coordinator Mary Anne Fantauzzi delves into the life and legacy of one of the first inductees into the National Museum of Dance's Hall of Fame, Catherine Littlefield. The Littlefield Ballet, founded in 1935, pre-dated the more famous American companies Ballet Theatre (1940) and New York City Ballet (1948). Catherine choreographed a ballet for cyclists, musical theatre, Broadway dances, and ice skating productions. She is best known for choreographing the first American 3-act version of Sleeping Beauty. This is Part One of a two part series. Next week, Fantauzzi will focus on another original Hall of Fame inductee: Lincoln Kirstein. https://vimeo.com/480112690 #TourTuesday #nationalmuseumofdance #dancemuseum

Happy 129th birthday to Ted Shawn! Together with his wife and artistic partner, Ruth St. Denis, Shawn established the Denishawn Dance Company and School in 1915. Their students included dance greats like Martha Graham, Charles Weidman, and Doris Humphrey. In 1930, he purchased a farm in the Berkshires: Jacob's Pillow. There he established "Ted Shawn and His Male Dancers," the first company to campaign for strong, reputable dance careers for men. Jacob's Pillow has survived to become the oldest and most acclaimed dance festival in the country. Shawn was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987. "Dance is the only art of which we ourselves are the stuff of which it is made" - Shawn (October 21, 1891 - January 9, 1972). #happybirthday #TedShawn #JacobsPillow #halloffame #dancemuseum

Welcome to Part One of Tour #16. In today's Connections Through Choreography, Docent Coordinator Mary Anne Fantauzzi focuses on the beginnings of Post-modernism in America and the ground-breaking work of Lucinda Childs, 2018 Hall of Fame inductee. When combined with next week's Part Two, there will be a total of nine Hall of Fame inductees mentioned. Tour #15 had a record breaking sixteen connections: Alfredo Corvino, Frederic Franklin, Agnes de Mille, Antony Tudor, Ted Sh...awn, Martha Graham, Alvin Ailey, Anna Pavlova, Leonide Massine, Bronislava Nijinska, George Balanchine, Merce Cunningham, Jose Limon, Doris Humprey, Paul Taylor, and Lucia Chase. https://vimeo.com/476930480 #TourTuesday #nationalmuseumofdance #dancemuseum

Today Mary Anne Fantauzzi focuses her tour on the first prominent female choreographer of ballet, Bronislava Nijinska, and the masterful ballet performer and choreographer Leonide Massine. https://vimeo.com/470135252 #TourTuesday #dancemuseum

Happy 106th birthday to Fayard Nicholas! Fayard and his brother, Harold, began their careers as young children in the Vaudville circuit and jazz clubs. Their parents were jazz musicians who brought them along to performances where they were introduced to the dance and music styling of the Harlem Renaissance. They developed their dance technique by watching these shows: they were completely self-taught. They performed alongside jazz greats like Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway ...and had significant Hollywood careers. One of their most famous moves was "no-hands splits," where they would leap over one another into full splits and get up without their hands. The Nicholas Brothers were inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2001. "My brother and I used our whole bodies, our hands, our personalities and everything. We tried to make it classic. We called our type of dancing classical tap and we just hoped the audience liked it" - Fayard Nicholas (October 20, 1914 - January 24, 2006). #happybirthday #FayardNicholas #NicholasBrothers #halloffame #dancemuseum See more

Film Acting with Stephanie Koenig & Chris Riggi is TONIGHT! You can still register for a drop-in class here: https://www.nationalmuseumofdance.org/calendar @chrisriggi @stephaniekoenig #signmeup #film #acting #zoom #register #dancemuseum

Film Acting with Stephanie Koenig & Chris Riggi continues with week two! You can still register for a drop-in class here: https://www.nationalmuseumofdance.org/calendar @chrisriggi @stephaniekoenig #signmeup #film #acting #zoom #register #dancemuseum

Happy 125th birthday to Doris Humphrey! Humphrey attended the Denishawn School of Dance where she trained, taught, and choreographed. With fellow Denishawn dancer, Charles Weidman, she left the school to pursue her own dance interests. She developed the "fall and recovery method;" yielding to gravity and quickly recovering were a key element of her teachings and choreography. After the Humphrey-Weidman Company disbanded and she retired as a dancer, Humphrey accepted the posit...ion of Artistic Director for the José Limón Dance Company. She also held positions on the original faculty for the prestigious dance programs of The Bennington School of Dance and The Julliard School. She was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987. "Nothing so clearly and inevitably reveals the inner man than movement and gesture" - Humphrey (October 17, 1895 - December 29, 1958). #happybirthday #DorisHumphrey #halloffame #dancemuseum See more

Election Day is less than 3 weeks away. Make your plan to cast your vote! Your vote counts. #EveryVoteCounts #ElectionDay #Vote #dancemuseum

Mary Anne Fantauzzi continues with part two on Isadora Duncan. She further discusses her widespread and lasting influence on the performing arts, taking note of four other members from the Mr. and Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Hall of Fame. #TourTuesday #IsadoraDuncan #dancemuseum https://vimeo.com/467820321

Film Acting with Stephanie Koenig & Chris Riggi begins TONIGHT! Register for all four classes in the session, or just one at a time. Register here: https://www.nationalmuseumofdance.org/calendar @chrisriggi @stephaniekoenig #signmeup #film #acting #zoom #register #dancemuseum

There's still time to register for Intermediate/Advanced Ballet with Ashley Bouder! The six-week session begins on Zoom this Friday. Register here: https://www.nationalmuseumofdance.org/calendar @ashleybouder #signmeup #ballet #zoom #register #dancemuseum

There's still time to register for Intermediate Ballet with Alec Knight! The six-week session begins on Zoom this Thursday! Register here: https://www.nationalmuseumofdance.org/calendar @AlecKnight #signmeup #ballet #zoom #register #dancemuseum

Happy 102nd birthday to Jerome Robbins! Robbins began dancing professionally in some of George Balanchine's early Broadway works and joined American Ballet Theatre in its formative years. As Robbins transitioned from soloist dancer to choreographer, he created some of the most borrowed and beloved ballets in American dance. After his time with ABT, he was made Associate Artistic Director of New York City Ballet in 1949 and Ballet Master in the mid 1960's. Robbins choreographe...d many classic Broadway shows including West Side Story and Fiddler on the Roof. He has won several Tonys, Academy Awards, and the Kennedy Center Honors, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1989. "(Dance) is like life, it exists as you're flitting through it and when it's over it's gone" - Robbins (October 11, 1918 - July 29, 1998). #happybirthday #JeromeRobbins #halloffame #dancemuseum See more