May 27
Born Today:
Isadora Duncan
Iconoclast Isadora Duncan (1877-1927) rejected the strictures of ballet technique and attire, refusing to wear a corset and instead opting to dance in flowing Grecian tunics and bare feet. She created her own movement vocabulary inspired by Greek statuary and artwork, consisting of running, leaping, and reaching. Invited to tour with dancer Loie Fuller (1862-1928) in 1902, Duncan delighted audiences and inspired dancers and artists all over Europe. For her, the solar plexus was the location of expressive possibility and she founded several schools to teach her technique, including one in the US. Although she died quite young, her dedicated students, the Isadorables, who all changed their last names to Duncan, continued teaching her technique, often considered the beginning of modern dance in America.
Also Born Today: Ballerina Alina Cojocaru (1981-) studied at the Kiev Ballet and the Royal Ballet schools and danced with the Royal Ballet, teaming with Johan Kobborg (1972-) from 2001-2013. That same year, they left for the Romanian National Ballet, she as a principal dancer and he as the artistic director. This short-lived post ended in 2016, but their performance in the lead roles of Akram Khan’s Giselle (2017) introduced them to an even wider world audience.
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Movie: Golddiggers of 1933