Overview

Martha Hill (1900-1995) was one of the most influential figures of twentieth century American dance. Her vision and leadership helped to establish dance as a serious area of study at the university level and solidify its position as a legitimate art form. Setting Hill's story in the context of American postwar culture and women's changing status, this riveting biography shows us how Hill led her colleagues in the development of American contemporary dance from the Kellogg School of Physical Education to Bennington College and the American Dance Festival to the Juilliard School at Lincoln Center. She created pivotal opportunities for Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, Charles Weidman, Hanya Holm, José Limón, Merce Cunningham, and many others. The book provides an intimate look at the struggles and achievements of a woman dedicated to taking dance out of the college gymnasium and into the theatre, drawing on primary sources that were previously unavailable. It is lavishly illustrated with period photographs.

Full Product Details

9780819568991

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Reviews

"""A superb book about the great Martha Hill, a visionary who supported the revolutionary pioneers of American modern dance. This portrait is at once intimate and touching. A must for all lovers of dance and its history."" LAWRENCE RHODES, artistic director, dance division, The Juillard School"""

A superb book about the great Martha Hill, a visionary who supported the revolutionary pioneers of American modern dance. This portrait is at once intimate and touching. A must for all lovers of dance and its history. LAWRENCE RHODES, artistic director, dance division, The Juillard School

Author Information

JANET MANSFIELD SOARES, author of Louis Horst: Musician in a Dancer's World (1992), is a professor emerita of dance at Barnard College, Columbia University, and lives in Tucson, Arizona, and Lyme, Connecticut.

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