REVIEW: "Katherine Dunham: Beyond The Dance"

Beige World editor in chief David Burnett shares his thoughts on Katherine Dunham:  Beyond The Dance, one of the exhibitions currently on display at the Missouri History Museum in St. Louis, Missouri.

"The hottest thing to hit Chicago since

Mrs. O'Leary's cow kicked the bucket."

- Press review of Katherine Dunham

David Burnett, Beige World Editor In Chief:

The Missouri History Museum, located in St. Louis, Missouri, is currently showing an exhibition that chronicles the life and career of legendary dancer/choreographer Katherine Dunham.  And since today (June 22nd) marks what would have been her 100th birthday, I thought it would be appropriate to tell you about my recent tour of the exhibition.

Elizabeth Pickard, Assistant Director of Community Education and Events for the Missouri History Museum, and one of the exhibition's main organizers, took time out to give me a special tour, and share her thoughts on Miss Dunham's legacy.

Most of the items on display - costumes, artwork, and other artifacts - were donated to the Missouri History Museum by Miss Dunham herself in 1991.  Other items are on loan from the personal collections of various private individuals.  Incidentally, John Pratt, Miss Dunham's husband of 45 years, designed her costumes.

The exhibition is organized into four different categories - a biography section that chronicles the life of Miss Dunham, and three sections that illustrate the cultural influences (Afro-Caribbean, African, and American) from which Miss Dunham drew inspiration.  She integrated these three influences with classical dance to create a new dance form known as the Dunham Technique. 

As I walked around and observed, I understood the significance of the subtitle Beyond The Dance.  I was fascinated to learn about the actual scope of Miss Dunham's talents beyond dance, particularly in the academic world.

It was a revelation to Ms. Pickard as well.

"I think, to me, it was just...I knew she was a genius, in terms of the dance world," said Ms. Pickard.  "I knew she was an accomplished scholar.  But the more that I found out about her, the enormity of her genius became clearer and clearer.  She was a beautiful writer, an amazing talented writer.  She had to be an incredibly good businesswoman to tour this huge company of dancers all around the world.  She was the only self-supporting African-American dance company [Dunham Dance Company] of its time, and it was certainly the first.  She had an enormous impact on the lives of numerous people in her role as a teacher.  And, then, that her level of scholarship continued throughout her life - that she really was the founder of an anthropological discipline [dance anthropology], which I didn't know until I started the research.  That she was an accomplished painter.  That she was a loving mother.  There was seemingly not very much that she was ever bad at.  She was amazing.  A renaissance woman - very much so."

One other prominent theme in the exhibition is the emphasis on education.  Computer kiosks called Get Involved Kiosks allow visitors to access a wide range of educational and humanitarian resources online.

"The best career advice given to the young is:

'Find what you like to do best,

and get someone to pay you for doing it.'"

- Katherine Dunham

At the Dunham School of Dance, students were given a well-rounded education that extended beyond dance.  Their curriculum also included social sciences, music, anthropology, and drama.

"She [Miss Dunham] was very much about educating the full human being," said Ms. Pickard.  "She insisted that her dancers have a very solid academic background, and that her actors had a dance and academic background, that her academics had an acting and dance background...she really was all about training well-rounded human beings."

One artifact in the exhibition that I found particularly intriguing was an electrical medical device, shown in the above picture.  Back in the day, it was used to relieve back, knee, and joint pain through electrical stimulation.  Miss Dunham suffered from chronic knee pain resulting from a childhood bout of rheumatic fever, and she used the device regularly throughout her entire dance career to alleviate the pain.

The exhibition will run until November 8, 2009, and includes various educational and cultural activities scheduled throughout the year.  For more information, check out the following Missouri History Museum Web links:

Web page for Katherine Dunham:  Beyond The Dance:

http://www.mohistory.org/exhibitions/special/250

Katherine Dunham Web site:  http://www.mohistory.org/KatherineDunham/

If you plan to be in the St. Louis area, you DEFINITELY want to check out Katherine Dunham:  Beyond The Dance before it ends its run in November.  It's a wonderful collection of sights, sounds, and colors that commemorate the life of a true pioneer in the history of modern dance.  And there's so much to see that you'll probably lose track of time without realizing it.

By the way, if you've seen the exhibition, or you have any thoughts about Miss Dunham, feel free to post a comment.

Comments

[chanel bags]

All for one, one for all.

[coach outlet stores]

Love, love them.love it!

[air jordan]

You have to believe in yourself. That’s the secret of success.

[sexy dance costumes]

"I think, to me, it was just...I knew she was a genius, in terms of the dance world," Nice dancing and the nice information you provide. Thank you both of you.

[laser pointer]

just keep the faith, it all belongs to you.

[Coach outlet]

Thank you Phil for the coverage. It would indeed be great to meet on Tuesday evening and discuss your experience.
This post too really i enjoyed going through it with regards.

[north face outlet]

Wake up already afternoon, spring and summer brings tears down the window reflects the sun, warm and comfortable.