"Modern Dancer" Murray Louis Signed TLS Dated 1969 For Sale
When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
"Modern Dancer" Murray Louis Signed TLS Dated 1969:
$349.99
Up for sale "Modern Dancer" Murray Louis Hand Signed TLS Dated 1969.
– February 1, 2016) was an American modern dancer and choreographer. Louis was
known as one of the most influential American modern dancers and
choreographers. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he grew up in Manhattan near Henry Street where he
would later attend class at the Henry Street Playhouse and also start his
company. He was one out of five children and his mother died when he was eight
years old. He was then sent to an orphanage until he was twelve. At this time
his sister Ethel, who was studying dance at the time, took him to many modern
dance concerts. He graduated from Samuel J. Tilden High
School in 1944. Louis was discharged from the U.S. Navy in 1946 and began to live in San Francisco, California. He then enrolled at Colorado College for a summer session conducted by Hanya Holm in 1949. It was there during one of their
workshops where he met Alwin Nikolais, who would later become his mentor and lifelong
partner. That year he moved back to New York to pursue a Dramatic Arts degree
at New York University and
attend class with Nikolais at Henry Street Playhouse. Louis made his debut as
the lead soloist in Nikolais’ newly formed Playhouse Dance Company (which would
later be renamed the Nikolais Dance Theater). He died in New York City on February 1, 2016 at the age of 89. Louis
was chosen as Associate Director to Nikolais and together they created the
Nikolais/Louis dance technique, which would go on to become a major influence
on modern dance and is still taught by his students. Louis founded his own
company in 1968 known as the Murray Louis Dance Company. His company was then
chosen to represent the U.S. State Department on
a two-month tour of India in 1968. In 1972 he piloted the
“Artist in School” program. He also created two works for Rudolph Nureyev which premiered on Broadway in 1978. Louis additionally worked in television in the
United States and Europe. For example, in the 1960s his artistry as both a
dancer and choreographer were showcased on live network television for
the CBS Repertoire Worhshop. In 1984 the Murray Louis Dance Company
collaborated with the Dave Brubeck Quartet and had four very successful
seasons, which were broadcast in the United States, Europe and Japan. Some of
his choreographed works produced for television station outside of the United
States include; Pulcinello for the Batsheva Dance Company on Israeli television
and The Tales of Cri-Cri for Mexico City television. In July 1987 PBS televised Nik
and Murray, an award-winning documentary film by Christian Blackwood, in
their American Masters series.
The Princeton Book Publishing Company released a video called Murray
Louis in Concert, a collection of solos in 1989. Louis
also had his collection of essays, Inside Dance, published by St. Martin’s Press and
released a five-part film series, Dance as an Art Form, which is
now used as an introduction series for Educational Arts programs in the United
States. A Cappella Books published his second book of
essays, On Dance. Louis’s and Nikolais’ dance companies merged in
1989.[9] On May 8, 1993 Louis’s most influential mentor
and partner, Alwin Nikolais, died. Louis did not dance for 2 years after Nikolais’
death. In 1995 his company performed at Carnegie Hall for 10,000 children during their “LINK”
program and in 1996 he completed a five-part video series titled, The World of
Alwin Nikolais. ouis had many accomplishments and received copious numbers of
awards, recognitions, and honorary degrees. He received the Dance Magazine award in 1977, which was presented to him
by his former dance instructor Hanya Holm. He also received a Thank You letter from
President Harry Truman, the Colorado
Contemporary Dance Award, two John Simon Guggenheim
Fellowships and the Scripps/American Dance Festival award (June
18, 2006). In 1998, he was selected as a Phi Beta Kappa Visiting Scholar for a “distinguished
lecture” tour of twelve universities and colleges in the United States. Louis
received his first Honorary Degree from Indiana University in
1970, his Honorary Doctorate of Performing Arts from Ohio University in 1999, his second Honorary Degree
from Rutgers University in
2000, and his third Honorary Degree from the Boston Conservatory in
2004. In 1998 Louis started assembling his archives and they are now available
at the Ohio University’s Vernon R. Alden Library in Athens, Ohio. He created more than one hundred works
(including 70 ballets), performed in 20 nations and every state of the United
States, and toured five continents. He is one of the few choreographers to have
danced in his own creations and a variety of composers produced music for him
and his performances. He also choreographed to the music of Bach, Brahms,
Schubert, Stravinsky, Tchaikovsky and many others composers. Some of the
companies he choreographed dances for include; the Royal Danish Ballet,
the Jose Limon
Company, the Hamburg Opera Ballet, the Scottish Ballet, the Berlin Opera Ballet, and the Cleveland Ballet. Louis
speaking of his choreography once said, “I don’t have a style. I come out of
dance itself. I operate the principles of dance the way I talk. I get a point
of view. Each piece has its own identity. It’s what choreography is all about.” Murray
Louis lived and worked in New York City, New York.
![Buy Now Buy Now](buy.gif)
Related Items:
Revolutionary modern dancer ballet photo Wendy Perron “One Morning” April 1968
$32.00
"Modern Dancer" Murray Louis Signed TLS Dated 1969
$349.99
Modern Dancer Statue- Solid Cast Bronze in Abstract Pose, 19 Inches Tall Statue
$299.00