This intriguing biography details the life and work of world dance pioneer La Meri (1899–1988). An American dancer, choreographer, teacher, and writer, La Meri was ahead of her time in championing cross-cultural dance performances and education, yet she is almost totally forgotten today. In La Meri and Her Life in Dance, Nancy Ruyter introduces readers to a visionary artist who played a pivotal role in dance history.
Born in Texas as Russell Meriwether Hughes, La Meri toured throughout Latin America, Europe, Asia, the Pacific, and the United States in the 1920s and ’30s, immersing herself in different dance traditions at a time when few American dancers explored styles outside their own. She learned about Indian dance culture from the celebrated Uday Shankar, studied belly dancing with the Moroccan sultan’s top dancer, and took flamenco lessons in Spain. La Meri spread awareness and enjoyment of the world’s myriad forms of expression before it was common for performing artists from these countries to tour internationally.
Ruyter describes how La Meri founded the Ethnologic Dance Center in New York City, choreographed innovative works based on various dance cultures for Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival and other venues, and wrote widely on the styles and techniques of international dance genres. This long-overdue book illustrates that the popularity of world dance today owes much to the trailblazing efforts of La Meri.
Contents
List of Figures
Preface
Introduction
1. Russell Meriwether Hughes: The Early Years, 1899–1920s
2. Early Professional Work and Touring, 1920s
3. Life in Italy and Beyond, 1929–1936
4. Australasia and Asia, 1936–1937
5. Here and There in a World of Turmoil, October 1937 to October 1939
6. A Reinvented Life in the United States as a Teacher, Innovator, and Woman, 1939–1956
7. Performance and Choreography in New York and Beyond (1940–1956) and Jacob’s Pillow (1940s–1970s)
8. New York, Cape Cod, San Antonio: New Transitions, 1956–1988
9. La Meri’s Writings
10. Final Words
Appendix A. Chronology of La Meri’s Life of Travel
Appendix B. La Meri’s “Ethnic Ballets” and Other Works
Appendix C. La Meri’s Dance Students and Colleagues
Notes
Bibliography
Index
