Muriel Stuart (dancer) explained

Muriel Stuart
Birth Name:Muriel Mary Stuart Popper
Birth Date:December 13, 1900
Birth Place:South Norwood, London, England, U.K.
Death Date:January 29, 1991 (aged 90)
Death Place:New York City, U.S.
Occupation:Dancer, dance educator
Spouse:
    Children:1

    Muriel Stuart (born Muriel Mary Stuart Popper; December 13, 1900 – January 29, 1991) was an English-born dancer and dance educator, based in the United States. She trained with Anna Pavlova, and taught at the School of American Ballet.

    Early life and education

    Muriel Mary Stuart Popper was born in 1900,[1] in South Norwood, London.[2] [3] She was discovered by Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova as a girl, and trained with Pavlova,[4] and with Ivan Clustine and Enrico Cecchetti. Later she studied modern dance with Martha Graham, Harald Kreutzberg, and Agnes de Mille.[5] "Every new phase of the art is interesting to me," she explained to a newspaper interviewer in 1931.[6]

    Career

    Stuart was a featured dancer with Pavlova's company[7] [8] on world tours from 1916 to 1926.[9] [10] She moved to Los Angeles in 1927, and opened a ballet school in Hollywood.[11] [12] [13] One of her Los Angeles students, Joan Bayley, recalled that "Muriel Stewart was so inspiring! She had this long neck and gorgeous epaulement."[14]

    Stuart danced and did choreography with the Chicago Civic Opera Ballet in the 1928-1929 season. She taught for many years at the School of American Ballet in New York, beginning in 1935.[15] Among the noted dancers who studied with Stuart were Myra Kinch, Todd Bolender, Laura Dean,[16] Michael Kidd,[17] Jacques d'Amboise,[18] and Alicia Alonso.[19]

    Stuart co-wrote a textbook with Lincoln Kirstein, The Classic Ballet: Basic Technique and Terminology (1952), with an introduction by George Balanchine.[20] [21] In 1987, she was the first winner of the Mae L. Wien Faculty Award for Distinguished Service at the School of American Ballet.[22]

    Personal life

    Stuart married and divorced twice. Her first husband was a violinist, Julian Brodetsky.[23] Her second husband was a playwright, James Warwick.[24] She had a son, Peter Warwick. She died in 1991, in New York City, aged 90 years. Her papers, including lesson plans and photographs, are in the Jerome Robbins Dance Division of the New York Public Library.[25] The New York Public Library also has an oral history interview with Stuart, given in 1978.[26]

    Notes and References

    1. Book: Who's who in music and dance in Southern California. 1933. Hollywood : Bureau of Musical Research. University of California Libraries. 255. Internet Archive.
    2. News: Girl Gets Letter from England. 1915-10-13. St. Louis Globe-Democrat. 2020-04-21. 7. Newspapers.com.
    3. Web site: Muriel Mary Stuart Popper, naturalization petition (1930).. Fold3. en. 2020-04-21.
    4. Book: Kinney, Margaret West. The Dance; Its Place in Art and Life. 1924. Frederick A. Stokes Company. 304. en.
    5. News: Dunning. Jennifer. Muriel Stuart, 90, Dancer for Pavlova And Ballet Teacher. 1991-01-30. The New York Times. 2020-04-21. en-US. 0362-4331.
    6. News: Mayer. Mary. Pavlowa Disciple Clings to Classic Ballet Ideal. 1931-11-29. The Los Angeles Times. 2020-04-21. 34. Newspapers.com.
    7. January 7, 1922. Distinguished Dancers to Assist Pavlowa. Pacific Coast Musical Review. 41. 4.
    8. December 17, 1921. Pavlowa's Ballet Russe. Pacific Coast Musical Review. 41. 5.
    9. Web site: Muriel Stuart's biography. Dance Class Music, Jay Distributors. 2020-04-21.
    10. July 1921. Colorful Dances Brighten the Stage. Theatre Magazine. 25.
    11. News: American Girls Praised. 1930-02-16. The Los Angeles Times. 2020-04-21. 30. Newspapers.com.
    12. News: Exponent of Russian Dancing Arrives. 1929-11-03. The Los Angeles Times. 2020-04-21. 38. Newspapers.com.
    13. News: Dancer Commands Large Following. 1931-03-01. The Los Angeles Times. 2020-04-21. 36. Newspapers.com.
    14. Web site: Early life and training. Joan Bayley. en-US. 2020-04-21.
    15. Book: Fisher, Barbara. In Balanchine's Company: A Dancer's Memoir. 2013-09-01. Wesleyan University Press. 978-0-8195-7447-3. 11. en.
    16. Web site: Laura Dean Biography. Laura Dean - Dancer, Choreographer, Composer. 2020-04-21.
    17. Web site: Remembering the Legendary Michael Kidd. 2018-12-21. L.A. Dance Chronicle. en-US. 2020-04-21.
    18. Book: D'Amboise, Jacques. I Was a Dancer. 2011-03-01. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. 978-0-307-59523-2. 81–82. en.
    19. Book: Tompkins. Cynthia. Notable Twentieth-century Latin American Women: A Biographical Dictionary. Foster. David William. 2001. Greenwood Publishing Group. 978-0-313-31112-3. 6–7. en.
    20. Book: Stuart. Muriel. The Classic Ballet: Basic Technique and Terminology. Kirstein. Lincoln. 1952. University Press of Florida. 978-0-8130-1617-7. en.
    21. News: Miss Muriel Stuart to Talk on Ballet. 1954-01-25. The Times-Tribune. 2020-04-21. 31. Newspapers.com.
    22. Web site: The Mae L. Wien Awards. School of American Ballet. en-US. 2020-04-21.
    23. News: WJW. Muriel Stuart (obituary). 1991-02-16. The Guardian. 2020-04-21. 21.
    24. News: James Warwick Is Dead at 89; Playwright and Screen Writer. 1983-08-19. The New York Times. 2020-04-21. en-US. 0362-4331.
    25. Web site: Muriel Stuart papers. New York Public Library Archives and Manuscripts. 2020-04-21.
    26. Web site: Interview with Muriel Stuart, 1978. NYPL Digital Collections. en. 2020-04-21.

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