Isadora Duncan Research Paper

rn Dance History
Kimberly Valmore
Isadora Duncan’s Legacy Isadora Duncan was the first American dancer to define natural movement. She was referred to as the Mother of Modern Dance due to her achievements and artistic abilities. She was not a fan of ballet because she thought it was “ugly and against nature.” She believed that dancing should be an art and not require so many rules like ballet. This led her to begin working in major dance companies and eventually start her own dance companies. Isadora Duncan’s success continues to inspire dancers around the world to this day. Isadora Duncan was born on May 27, 1877 in San Francisco, California. As a child at the age of six, she taught other children in her neighborhood how to wave their arms. At the age of ten, her and her sister, Elizabeth Duncan, developed a new system of dancing using interpretation and improvisation. During this time, they attended school but found it too strenuous and ended up dropping out. Due to the fact that her family was poor, Isadora and her siblings continued to
Her school did not consist of contracts or touring because she felt that it took away from “the creation of beauty and the education of the young”. Her first dance school was where the Isadorables were born; Anna Denzler, Maria-Theresa Kruger, Irma Erich-Grimme, Elizabeth Milker, Margot Jehl, and Erica Lohmann. Duncan took in these young girls who had low income families. Her students were chosen based off their financial need and not on their natural dance ability. The Isadorables received Isadora Duncan’s last name for “professional purposes”. The Isadorables were great dancers and received their name from their performances. They stayed with Isadora Duncan from 1904-1920. In May of 1921, Isadora was to start a new company in Russia and only Irma Erich-Grimme returned. While Duncan performed, Irma took over at the