Showing posts with label Jane Sherman. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jane Sherman. Show all posts

Friday, March 19, 2010

Denishawn Dancer Jane Sherman

Jane Sherman has died. The dancer and author passed away on March 16th.

Sherman (1908 - 2010) was one of the last - perhaps the last - living members of the early / first generation / original Denishawn Dance Company. She was also a kind of unofficial historian of Denishawn and its founders Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn. Sherman authored a handful of books on the subject, and also appeared in various documentaries.

One of the documentaries she appeared in was Louise Brooks: Looking for Lulu. In it, Sherman spoke about Louise Brooks' two season tenure with Denishawn prior to her entry into silent film.

Sherman's time with Denishawn did not overlap with that of Louise Brooks. They missed each other missed each other by about a year. (Had Brooks not have been kicked out of Denishawn, they likely would have toured the Far East together.) Nevertheless, Sherman was aware of her famous predecesor and wrote about Brooks and her small but noted history with Denishawn in various works.

Sherman was the author of various articles and books including Soaring: The Diary of Letters of a Denishawn Dancer in the Far East, 1925-1926 (Wesleyan, 1976), The Drama of Denishawn Dance (Wesleyan, 1979), Denishawn: The Enduring Influence (Twayne, 1983), and Barton Mumaw, Dancer: From Denishawn to Jacob's Pillow and Beyond (Wesleyan, 2000). I have each. Each are excellent.

A little more on Sherman and her life can be found on the arts meme website and on the ballet talk website. Sherman's death was announced by Norton Owen, Director of Preservation, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival.

[The image below shows members of the Denishawn Dance Company during the 1922-1923 season. Martha Graham is center, Louise Brooks is second from the right.]

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