69.00 USD
Ruth St. Denis by Georg Gerlach, a gorgeous hand-tinted card, photograph probably taken between 1906 and 1909 during her European tour.
"First Lady of American Dance," "America's divine dancer" and "Queen of American Dance" are but a few of the titles conferred upon one of America's most influential dancers who, raised on a small farm in New Jersey, was once known simply as Little Ruthie Dennis.
Ruth Saint Denis (1879-1968) is often compared to Isadora Duncan, or perhaps contrasted with her, for while both are seen as architects of modern dance, their approaches were very distinctive. St. Denis' biographer, Suzanne Shelton, has noted of Duncan that she sought "the Self in the Universe," while St. Denis tried to find "the Universe in the Self."
In her autobiography, St. Denis wrote, "When as a child running over the fields of our farm I felt the joy of life pulsing through me, when I felt the warm earth under my feet and the great golden sun bathing my body, then I knew life as a magical reality." This early mixture of physical and spiritual discipline and joy was to stay with St. Denis for the rest of her life, serving as the foundation for her development into one of America's foremost dancers and choreographers whose innovations in dance were to have a profound influence.
At the crux of St. Denis' approach was the melding of dance with spirituality, and most particularly a spirituality drawn from exotic, non-western cultures. One story, often repeated, is that she was inspired by a poster advertizing cigarettes which featured the Egyptian goddess Isis.
Her 1905 production of Rahda, which told the Hindu story of a milkmaid who became the god Krishna's beloved consort, incorporated the five senses in the form of bells, flowers, wine, jewels, and palm kisses, respectively representing sound, smell, taste, sight, and touch. St. Denis wore a costume of her own design that bared her navel and had her dancing barefoot, both were considered very risque at the time.
A wealthy society woman and patron of the arts, Mrs. Orlando Rouland, arranged matinees for private audiences in reputable Broadway theaters. Rahda was a tremendous hit and helped catapult St. Denis to international fame. Traveling with her mother between 1906 and 1909, she toured Europe to great acclaim, particularly in Vienna and Germany.
In 1915, St. Denis and Ted Shawn (initially an adoring fan and himself a dancer, but by that time her husband) founded the Denishawn School of Dance. Among many notable dancers, a dancer in their company, was silent and film actress Louise Brooks.
In 1938, St. Denis founded Adelphi University's dance program, one of the first such departments in an American university, and in 1940 she was a co-founder of School of Nataya, which had a focus on Oriental dance. In 1987, nearly twenty years after her death, St. Denis was inducted into National Museum of Dance's Mr. & Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Hall of Fame.
We're excited to have found this one! A delightful card, historically important, and in marvelous condition. Please examine our high res scans for detail.
The item you are considering for purchase is, unless otherwise noted, a vintage postcard of approximately 5 and 1/2, by 3 and 1/2 inches. Postage is for fully-insured, first class shipping in a secure photo mailer (to avoid any damage to your purchase in the mails), and we happily combine shipping on all paper goods. If you purchase two cards, we will not charge for postage on the second card, and when you purchase three or more cards from us at the same time, your shipping will be entirely free, except for international orders which, because of increases in international shipping rates will still be charged one card's shipping fees on orders of three or more. We do not charge for insurance or shipping materials, and as of the date of this listing are still charging below our overall cost on shipping.
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Sources:
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruth_St._Denis
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Shawn
* http://www.pitt.edu/~gillis/dance/ruth.html
* http://www.danceheritage.org/stdenis.html
* http://www.danceheritage.org/treasures/stdenis_essay_hecht.pdf
* http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Ruth_St._Denis
* http://www.stowitts.org/ted_shawn_bio.htm
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skirt_dance
* http://www.streetswing.com/histmain/z3skirt.htm