February 24
Born Today:
Irmgard Bartenieff
Irmgard Bartenieff (1900-1981) developed fundamental movement principles, based on the work of Rudolf Laban (1879-1958) and her work as a dance therapist. She is credited with helping polio patients and young children cope with unruly bodies. Her work is fundamental to our current understanding of imagery and movement in relation to the surrounding space, and although she is not well known outside of the dance field, Bartenieff’s ideas and methods have informed physical therapy and other body therapies.
Also Born Today: Ballet dancer Edouard Borovansky (1902-1959), who created the foundation for the first national ballet company, The Australian Ballet. Ballet dancer Wakefield Poole (1936-2021) performed with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo starting in 1957 and appears in the 2005 Ballets Russes documentary. Choreographer John Neumeier (1942-), has been the director of the Hamburg Ballet since 1973. Ukranian dancer/choreographer Grigoriy Chapkis (1930-2021) performed with the Pavlo Virsky ensemble and was a judge for Dancing with the Stars starting in 2006. Chapkis died of COVID in 2021. Tap dancer Sarah Petronio (1944-), who was mentored by legendary tap dancer Jimmy Slyde (1927-2008) in Paris, and later produced tap dance festivals in Chicago in the 1990s.
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Movie: Hit the Deck released in 1955
Broadway Premiere: Silk Stockings in 1955
Dance Premiere: Rooms in 1955