|
|
|
Stage Name |
Birth Name |
| Ruth
St. Denis |
Ruth
Denis |
|
Miss
Ruth, as she was affectionately called, started acting out
theater and ballet as a little child. Ruth started out as
a cloak model, a six day bicycle race participant, a skirt
dancer, Toe dancer and actress. Denis had practically
no ballet training except for a single class (some say
3) with Bonfanti, but was kicked out of class. Genevieve
Stebbins was very inspirational to Miss Ruth. Later in life
she devoted herself to Christianity, and formed a church
(Divine Dance) and formed the Society of Spiritual
Arts. David Belasco nicknamed her Saint, due to her air.
Her first experience with staging a play
was with Egypta, but was abandoned due to expenses. She
followed it by Radha in 1906 at the Hudson Theater in New
York for a group of managers and a few other spots then
back to the Hudson as a full dance program... it was a success.
She would then leave for her first tour of Europe. While
touring, she met great success abroad except in England,
however Germany loved her. Returning home in 1909, she finally
produced Egypta and O' Mika.
Dennis teamed with then dancer Ted
Shawn in 1914 and soon after married forming the Denishawn
Company and later a dance studio. The two separated in 1932
and she continued to run the school, till financial troubles
forced her to close the doors. She would semi-retire until
1940, when she teamed with La
Meri and found new interest in Hindu and Oriental
dance. Ruth moved to southern California during W.W.II.
Ruth St. Denis and Ted
Shawn had a major impact on dance, Ballet, and Modern
especially.
|
|
 |
Birth Place |
Birth Date |
Spouse |
Offspring |
| Newark,
New Jersey |
1/20/1877
- 7/21/1968 |
Ted
Shawn |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dances / Ballets |
Dances |
Dance Partners |
| Bakwali |
|
Miriam |
Ballet |
Charles
Weidman |
| Black
& Gold Sari |
|
O'Mika |
Cobra
Dance |
La
Meri |
|
Cobras, the |
|
Peacock |
Early
Ballroom |
Martha
Graham |
| Cuadro
Flamenco |
|
Radha |
Ethnic
Dances |
Ted
Shawn |
| Egypta |
|
Salome |
Hindu
Dances |
|
|
|
| Green
Nautch |
|
Spirit
Of The Sea |
Incense
Dance |
|
|
|
| Incense |
|
Yogi |
Modern |
|
|
|
| Ishtar |
|
White
Jade |
Nautch (Lewisoh
Stadium) |
|
|
|
| Liebestraum |
|
Xochitl |
Oriental |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
Radha |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
Religious
Dances |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
Dance
of Salome |
|
|
|
|
Night Clubs |
Theaters, etc. |
Stage |
| n/a |
Bijou Theatre (1901) |
1900 - Zaza |
| |
|
|
Criterion Theatre (1900) |
1901 - The Auctioneer |
| |
|
|
Hampden's Theatre (1928) |
1901 - Du Barry |
| |
|
|
Hudson Theater |
1928 - The Light
of Asia |
| |
|
|
Jacobs Pillow |
|
| |
|
|
Lewisoh Stadium (1928) |
|
| |
|
|
Ziegfeld Theater |
|
|
|
