May 10
Born Today:
Fred Astaire
Legendary dancer Fred Astaire (1899-1987) and his sister Adele Astaire (1896-1981) made a name for themselves as youngsters on the vaudeville circuit with an act that included tap and ballroom dance. They got a break on Broadway in 1917, and performed together in shows throughout the 1920s. Adele left the act in 1932 to marry an English nobleman and Fred returned to Broadway to star in The Gay Divorce (1932) and moved to Hollywood shortly afterward. A fortunate pairing with dancer Ginger Rogers (1911-1995) in the movie musical Flying Down to Rio (1933) sparked a partnership that would last through 10 films, including Top Hat (1935), Follow the Fleet (1936), Swing Time (1936), and Shall We Dance (1937), among others. Although Astaire would go on to dance with other partners and Rogers would pursue dramatic roles, the Astaire and Rogers chemistry created many memorable dances.
Also Born Today: Ballet dancer/historian Jan Cieplinski (1900-1972) trained in Poland before dancing with the original Ballets Russes in the 1920s. He worked for several European dance organizations and wrote the book Outline of Polish Ballet History (1956). Modern dancer Helen McGehee (1921-2020) performed with Martha Graham (1894-1991) for 29 years, creating roles in Night Journey (1947) and Clytemnestra (1958) and taught at Juilliard from 1951-1982. Ailey dancer and Artistic Director (1989-2011), modern dancer Judith Jamison (1943-) amazed audiences with the solo Cry (1971), a 16-minute tour de force created for her (and dedicated to his mother) by choreographer Alvin Ailey (1931-1989). Actor Victoria Rowell (1959-) studied ballet as a youngster and danced with ABT II before pursuing a television and film career, appearing in the series Diagnosis Murder and in the movie Eve’s Bayou (1997).
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Dance Premiere: Day on Earth in 1947