Doris Humphrey was the leader of modern dance, she has significant influence on dance history. First, she created the concept of "Fall and Recovery" that discovery the ballet with basic physical movement that get rid of traditional posture and idea.
Second, she created the first concert that had good use of choreographic method for modern dance. And her The Art of Making Dances (1958) is the first kind book at that time, which set a good example to following choreograph and leave the important document for research.
Last but not least, she is the first person who record the choreograph process with separate dance and dancer.
"The steel of Doris Humphrey’s mind with its insights into reality never interfered with the velvet of her creative spirit. My first encounter as a student with my future teacher’s undying faith in the dance was in the form of a credo posted in the studio:
To be master of one’s body:
to find a perfect union between the inner thought and outer form ~ to draw from this a radiance and power that makes of life a more glorious and vital experience ~ this is to dance
To gain this mastery, to achieve that perfect union, and to present one’s art in the forum of a theater for the benefit of all to seeÉthese were the goals of the newly formed American Modern Dance. The price was high: nothing less than everything. And Doris Humphrey paid it time and time again.
In spite of repeated disappointments, her message was ever positive. Dances appeared, one after the other. Ranging from lyrical abstraction of reality to drama of all dimensions, there was the pictorially conceived and music-less “Water Study,” the pure and perfect Processional from the “Drama of Motion” (also without accompaniment) and the spiritually evocative “Air for the G String” set to Bach’s noble “Air” from his Orchestral Suite in D Minor; the chillingly expressive distillation of a Cretan ritual, “Dionysiaques” and Doris’s brilliant solo, “The Call/Breath of Fire,” an adventure into a purposely limited structure suggesting an emotional stasis, a mini-dance, decades in advance of the sixties!
Then, her two visualizations of the role of women: the first, an ensemble work daringly conceived in biological terms, “Dances of Women” and “Two Ecstatic Themes,” a two-part solo delving into the dual nature of a modern woman who obeys her instinctual need for love and countermands it with her equally urgent demands for self-identity, doubtlessly, the first statement of its kind in dance long in advance of the emergence of women’s “rights.”
All these, plus other works of stature, were premiered during the six years I was with the company. And during the next twenty years until her death in 1958, Doris created both large and small scale dances, the most renowned being her Bach-inspired “Passacaglia” and her indictment of possessive motherhood, “With My Red Fires.” Both of these works resounded with the same positive point of view as that she once expressed in the 1941 edition of Frederick Rand Rogers’ Dance: A Basic Educational Technique: “My dance is an art concerned with human values. It upholds only those values which make for harmony and opposes all forces inimical to those values.” Herein lies the steel and velvet of Doris Humphrey’s genius, which lives on in the many reincarnations of her magnificent contributions to twentieth-century dance. I sincerely hope that this year’s Centennial Celebrations of her birth on October 17, 1895, will alert a destructive world to the life-saving potential of a great artist’s humanitarian philosophy."
From "Steel and Velvet: A Centennial Reminiscence", I saw different Doris's aspect beyond her professional aspect. first and foremost, she is not only a talent dancer, also and most important is, she paid much time and effect on her dance and her chorography. One thing make me very impressive is that when she in Denishwan school, due to her family finance crisis, she open her dance school to support her family, and let her mother be the business manager and accompanist. And the school got success at that time. Thus I want to point to that her success cannot without her effort, independence and talent.
Second, success depend on attitude. Ernestine states that she never said negative. Although she struggled by life, she still stayed in positive that is very estimable. That reminder me that she created the concept of " fall and recovery" that is famous in nature and basic movement. I cannot stop thinking that is her attitude, nature and peace never to complain just do what you want to do and what you need to do. This is what you are and most nature herself.
I am not a dance major student, so all the ballerina introduced in the class are not familiar to me. However, finally I choose Doris Humphrey because that her style prefer nature and soft rather than traditional ballet. My mother is a advanced Yoga coach, I have certain influence by her, sometimes I would like do some yoga. Thus when I saw Doris dancing in the video, I felt like this is very nature and comfortable. The most important thing is that I believe she combined the ballet and modern dance perfectly. when I watch her show feel that I not only enjoy a ballet show, also see her passion and attitude through her chorography.
Actually I also pretty interested in ballet. Last semester I took Basic ballet class for non-dance major students. It is a fantasinating experience. Although I just learned some very basic posture, but it is a start to explore a new staff. Since I am fascinating both yoga and ballet, there is a question appear in my mind what if ballet meet yoga?
At the Denishawn School, Miss Ruth encouraged her to
choreograph. At that time, she has created
Valse Caprice” (also known as “Scarf Dance”), followed by “Soaring”, and
“Scherzo Waltz” (“Hoop Dance”), all of which continue to be performed by
various companies today. However, the “fall and Recovery” is concept she
created. Essentially, she was fully use the tension and relaxation in the body,
which she pay attention on the release muscle and breath cycle. She is first
person who put her interest on the basic physical resource, such that breath,
weight and balance.
Moreover, the theory of her dance is “was the German philosopher Frederick Nietzsche's idea about the split in the human psyche between each person's Apollonian side (rational, intellectual) and our Dionysian side (chaotic, emotional). The true essence of the modern dance was the movement that happened in between these extremes, which Humphrey labeled "the arc between two deaths."” (Barzel, 2000)
As one of most famous dancer in U.S, Doris Humphrey was born in Oak Park on October 17, 1895. Her father was a journalist and hotel manger who named Horace Buckingham Humphrey. And her mother was a pianist who called Julia Ellen Wells. Her mother's ancestor were from England to Boston. And her father arrived on the Mayflower in 1620. Thus Doris was tenth generation American.
Under her mother's encouragement, Doris accepted dance training in an early age. However, her dancer teacher Mary Wood Hinman who taught her from kindergarten through high school enlighten her to explore dance. later on, Miss Hinman held pageants and programs that arouse her to be a dancer. then Miss Hinman encourage Doris to attend to summer program in Denishawn school in Los Angeles in 1917. this is start of Doris dance career. Her talent was approved by her instructor. After this, Miss Ruth encourage her to choreograph. she created many works still be performed today.
Charles Weidman is a important collaborator for Doris Humphrey. After two years she dancing throughout the United State , Doris Humphrey and Charles Weidman quit from Denishwan school. they went to New York, and established Humphrey-Weidman company. And they led to the new dance--modern dance.
this is vedio that Doris Humphrey dance with Weidman at that time.
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