Katherine Dunham

DANCER & CHOREOGRAPHER
Didn't begin formally studying dance until her late teens, but even then she didn't consider it a career path
Attended the University of Chicago, earning her doctorate in anthropology
Traveled to the Caribbean on a fellowship, studying indigenous dance traditions for a year and a half
Upon returning to the United States in 1936, she began choreographing her own dances based on her travels
Immersed herself in the African-American dances of New York City
Starred in and co-choreographed Cabin in the Sky, a successful all-black musical on Broadway, in 1941
In 1945 she founded the Dunham School of Dance and Theater, teaching the Dunham Technique, which combined elements of classical ballet, Caribbean, African, and African-American folk dances
Sued performance halls and venues for racist policies, and created a ballet about lynching called Southland
Also appeared in nine Hollywood films, and choreographed the Metropolitan Opera's 1965 production of Aida (starring soprano Leontyne Price)
Recipient of numerous honors, including the Kennedy Center Lifetime Achievement Award, the Albert Schweitzer Music Award, and the National Medal of the Arts

photo by Phyllis Twachtman, World Telegram staff photographer [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Bibliography: Lavrin, Asuncion. “Dunham, Katherine.” The Oxford Encyclopedia of Women in World History, Oxford University Press, Vol. 2, 2008, p. 116.
Marciniak, Kristin. Women in Arts and Entertainment. Minneapolis: Abdo Publishing, 2017. Print.

Support these organizations dedicated to preserving her story & mission:

Katherine Dunham Museum
The Katherine Dunham Centers for Arts & Humanities

Books by this Awesome Woman

A Touch of Innocence: A Memoir of Childhood

Biographies for Kids and Young Adults

Katherine Dunham: Pioneer of Black Dance

Research

Katherine Dunham: Dance and the African Diaspora

Kaiso!: Writings by and about Katherine Dunham

Katherine Dunham: Recovering an Anthropological Legacy, Choreographing Ethnographic Futures

Josephine Baker and Katherine Dunham: Dances in Literature and Cinema

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