Xenia Zarina Explained

Xenia Zarina
Birth Name:June Zimmerman
Birth Date:1903
Death Date:August 15, 1967
Death Place:Mexico City
Occupation:Dancer, dance scholar, dance educator
Notable Works:Classic Dances of the Orient (1967)

Xenia Zarina (1903 – August 15, 1967), born June Zimmerman, was an American dancer.

Early life

June Zimmerman was the daughter of Oliver Brunner Zimmerman and Grace Adele Bushnell Zimmerman. Contrary to some accounts of her early life,[1] both of her parents were born in the American Midwest. Her father was a military engineer during World War I,[2] who taught at the University of Wisconsin[3] [4] and the University of California,[5] and wrote a manual for tractor engine maintenance.[6] She graduated from Lyons Township High School in Illinois, and studied dance with Michel Fokine and other Russian dancers.[7] [8]

Career

Zarina danced with the Chicago Opera Civic Ballet as a young woman,[9] [10] and gave dance recitals for community groups in the midwest.[11] [12] She appeared as a dancer in films Morning Judge (1926) and Chucho el Roto (1934). In 1935, she made her New York debut at the Guild Theatre, in a program of regional Mexican and "interpretive" dances with elaborate costumes.[13]

She traveled in Mexico[14] and many Asian countries[15] [16] during the 1930s and 1940s, studying, performing, and teaching traditional dances.[17] She studied with Matsumoto Kōshirō VII in Japan.[18] For a time, when her travels were restricted during World War II, she taught dance to the daughter of the Shah of Iran.[19] [20] While in Iran, she worked with a fellow American expatriate, Nilla Cram Cook, who held a high position in Iran's Ministry of Education.[21]

An illustration depicting Zarina by Magda Nachman[22] was published in Dance Magazine in 1952. She was on the program at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival in 1955.[23] [24] She wrote a book, Classic Dances of the Orient (1967),[25] with "particularly extensive treatments of the Indian Bhurat Natyam and the Japanese Nihan Buyo."[26]

Personal life

Zarina died in 1967, in her sixties, in Mexico City. Her brother Gordon Zimmerman wrote about her life for an Illinois newspaper after her death.

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Bernstein, Lina. Magda Nachman: An Artist in Exile. 2020-06-23. Academic Studies PRess. 978-1-61811-970-4. en.
  2. News: 1919-01-15. Liberty Fuel is O. K.. 6. Republic County Democrat. 2020-09-08. Newspapers.com.
  3. News: 1941-05-13. Former Instructor at Madison Succumbs. 15. The Journal Times. 2020-09-08. Newspapers.com.
  4. News: 1941-05-14. Oliver B. Zimmerman. 2. Wisconsin State Journal. 2020-09-08. Newspapers.com.
  5. News: 1939-04-21. J. Zimmerman, Local Inventor, Dies in South. 6. The Capital Times. 2020-09-08. Newspapers.com.
  6. Book: Zimmerman, Oliver Brunner. Internal Combustion Engines and Tractors, Their Development, Design, Construction, Function and Maintenance. 1920. International Harvester. en.
  7. News: October 19, 1967. Brother of Xenia Zarina Writes About Her Life. 25. Brookfield Citizen. September 8, 2020. NewspaperArchive.com.
  8. News: October 9, 1931. Chenkin and Zarina at Orchestra Hall. Chicago Sentinel. September 8, 2020. NewspaperArchive.com.
  9. Isaac Cohen. Matthew. March 2007. DANCING THE SUBJECT OF 'JAVA' : International Modernism and Traditional Performance, 1899–1952. Indonesia and the Malay World. en. 35. 101. 9–29. 10.1080/13639810701233722. 214652986. 1363-9811. free.
  10. News: 1930-03-23. Opera Ballet Finds Rest Here After Long Tour. 8. Star Tribune. 2020-09-08. Newspapers.com.
  11. News: 1931-01-26. Oriental Dancing of Xenia Zarina Pleases Watchers. 4. Wausau Daily Herald. 2020-09-08. Newspapers.com.
  12. News: 1932-04-09. Dances of Mexico Shown by Artists in Studio Recital. 4. Wausau Daily Herald. 2020-09-08. Newspapers.com.
  13. News: Martin. John. 1935-01-21. XENIA ZARINA DANCES IN NEW YORK DEBUT; Interesting Mexican Numbers, Excellently Costumed, Are Features of Program.. en-US. The New York Times. 2020-09-08. 0362-4331.
  14. News: 1932-04-07. Guest Dancer Sees Hope for America. 4. Wausau Daily Herald. 2020-09-08. Newspapers.com.
  15. News: August 9, 1938. Dansavond Xenia Zarina. Soerabaijasch Handelsblad. September 8, 2020. NewspaperArchive.com.
  16. News: April 22, 1938. Xenia Zarina. De Sumatra Post. September 8, 2020. NewspaperArchive.com.
  17. News: 1935-01-19. Gains Permission. 5. The San Bernardino County Sun. 2020-09-08.
  18. News: 1937-07-30. Xenia Zarina Recital Tonight. 5. Tribune (Philippines : 1932 - 1945). 2020-09-09. Trove.
  19. News: 1955-08-20. Ruth St. Denis, 75, Returns to Pillow. 29. The Berkshire Eagle. 2020-09-08. Newspapers.com.
  20. News: 1958-07-10. Visiting Dancer Recalls Some Oriental Footwork. 8. Star Tribune. 2020-09-08. Newspapers.com.
  21. News: 1948-08-04. UNESCO May Miss Its Dancing Girls. 3. The Sydney Morning Herald. 2020-09-18. Newspapers.com.
  22. Web site: 2018-09-10. Xenia Zarina (1947). 2020-09-09. Magda Nachman Acharya. en.
  23. Web site: Person : Xenia Zarina. 2020-09-08. Jacobs Pillow Archive.
  24. News: Parker. T. H.. 1955-06-12. Danes en Arabesque. 27. Hartford Courant. 2020-09-08. Newspapers.com.
  25. Book: Zarina, Xenia. Classic Dances of the Orient. 1967. Crown Publishers. en.
  26. Web site: Classic Dances of the Orient (review). 2020-09-08. Kirkus Reviews. en.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Xenia Zarina".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.