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I believe that we are never more truly and profoundly human than when we dance. --José Limón

Limón's writings here tell of his childhood and early adult years. Born in Culiacán, Mexico, the eldest of 12 children, Limón showed great talent as a visual artist from early on. His family moved to the U.S. when he was 7 (first to Arizona, then California), where he attended Catholic school and continued his drawing and painting. It was not until the late '20s, when he moved to New York City to study art, that Limón saw his first dance concert and changed course entirely. "I knew with shocking suddenness that until then I had not been alive or, rather, that I had yet to be born," he writes. With a level of detail that belies his sense of miraculous discovery, he chronicles his work with and appreciation of such 20th-century choreographic masters as Doris Humphrey, Charles Weidman, Martha Graham, and George Balanchine. The memoir ends just as Limón has formed his own company.

You couldn't ask for better stewardship for these papers, which had been viewable until now only at the dance collection of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. The Society of Dance History Scholars, with Lynn Garafola acting as editor, drove this project. Carla Maxwell, the current artistic director of the José Limón Dance Company, wrote the foreword; and Village Voice dance critic Deborah Jowitt penned the introduction. For a short time, at least, Limon lives again. --Jean Lenihan ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Concise, thorough & easy to read
This book is especially interesting and easy to follow. It provides a sound overview of the history of dance with special focus on ballet and modern dance. This book introduces the novice to the legendary art of dance and captures the reader's attention with crafty storytelling. I particularly enjoyed the portion focusing on the history of ballet. Anderson introduces the reader to many of the individuals who shaped and popularized this art form while providing a firm background of the origins and development of this art. This book begins with a history of dance in the Greco-Roman era and brings the reader full circle with discussions of recent triumphs in dance. Anderson creates a book that is informative and thorough while presenting the reader with drawings and photographs of many influential artists and great performances. ... Read more

Book Description

The Juilliard School is known throughout the world for its training programs in music, dance, and drama. Martha Graham, José Limón, John Houseman, and members of the Juilliard String Quartet taught there. Van Cliburn, Miles Davis, Robin Williams, Kevin Kline, Yo-Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, and Leontyne Price are just a few of Juilliard's celebrated students. Now, in this sparkling portrait-conceived as a companion to an American Masters documentary scheduled to air this fall on PBS-the public gets an up-close, in-depth look inside this legendary institution.

This intimate pictorial study offers page after page of fabulous photographs, clippings, notes, and posters, supplemented by informative captions and quotes by famous alumni. Juilliard is a lively tribute to the continuing excellence of this famed conservatory that, in its 97-year history, has set the standard for education in the performing arts. ... Read more

Book Description

Over the course of 45 years, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater has evolved from a small group of young dancers traveling the country in a station wagon to what is widely considered the premier modern dance company in the world. Today, The Ailey is also a national cultural institution, comprising two performing companies; an accredited school with classes for children and both certificate and B.F.A. programs; and community outreach programs.

Ailey Spirit pauses to reflect on the company's incredible journey as it nears its mid-century mark. A breathtaking collection of photographs from the best dance photographers, along with behind-the-scenes and candid shots, illustrate every aspect of the company's history: the dancers and choreographers; the travels and challenges; even the creation of a new ballet. The text, by former dancer and dance historian Robert Tracy, draws on previously unpublished interviews with more than 50 key individuals. AUTHOR BIO: ALVIN AILEY AMERICAN DANCE THEATER and Ailey II, its junior company, perform for more than 350,000 people every year, visiting more than 50 cities annually in the United States and abroad. The Ailey School trains preprofessional students and dance enthusiasts.

Former ballet dancer ROBERT TRACY is the author of Goddess: Martha Graham's Dancers Remember and the coauthor of Balanchine's Ballerinas: Conversations with the Muses and Spaces of the Mind: Isamu Noguchi's Dance Designs.

In 1997 WYNTON MARSALIS became the first jazz artist to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize in music, for his work Blood on the Fields. He is artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. ... Read more

Book Description

American Icons comprises the people, places, and things that have, by virtue of history, nostalgia, taste, topographical beauty, or simple familiarity, come to symbolize our country. ... Read more

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Reviews (11)

excellent presentation of difficult material
Nijinsky's unexpurgated diary is an important document both for dance history and for psychiatry. This edition has an excellent, insightful introduction and very thorough translator's notes. I found out fascinating details, such as the fact that Nijinsky began the diary the day he gave a deranged performance at a hotel, and probably meant it as proof that he was not as crazy as he seemed. (Sadly, it proved exactly the opposite.) A beautiful job has been done in presenting and contexting this difficult material. Anyone with an interest in dance and/or mental illness should read it.

fasinating dancers life
this book is highly through in it's full translation of Nijinsky's diary, but best part of this book are the inclusion of the never before published "fourth book" which included poems and letters written by Nijinsky as well as an introduction which helps to clarify not only the historical background but also delves into the mental state Nijinsky was in as he wrote his diary.

Beautiful and Prophetic
1. "God said to me, 'Go home and tell your wife that you are mad'."

Even if we are not ready to accept this assertion as a proof of Nijinsky's genius (i.e. him edging on God-Consciousness on his way to full enlightenment), we should at least be able to recognise that the author obviously did not view himself as insane, but, in his own eyes, consciously pretended to be such as the only means at hand to escape the harsh chilliness and cruelty of an insensitive world, handing over all responsibilities of the non-esoteric sides of life to those who feel they know such things better.

2. Neither the conclusion should be that the great Master of Choreography ended his life in a miserable demise, unworthy of a great genius and a potential role-model for generations to come.

On the last pages, as if to conclude the diary, Nijinsky speaks of a wonderful vision of his three years old daughter as she smiles at him: "I see what she is trying to tell me: it is not all about sadness and miserliness - there's also joy in life". Thus reminding of Tolstoy's famous formula "if you want to be joyful and happy, then just be that!".

The author's life has clearly been that of struggle and constant contemplations over the world's stubbornness in its reiterated refusal to accept the artist's message of love, despite its pure simplicity. And yet now on the verge of the sunset of life it all suddenly seems to have been nothing but a temporary, though little longer than usual, unpleasant dream, the remaining fogs of which are dispersed through a simple rearrangement of attention leading one to a life in a closer company with one's God. A life the fuller utilisation of the pleasures of which are not bound by the limits of life and death.

3. As for Nijinsky's main message, as it is contained in the diary itself, I think it is found in the place where the artist speaks of his discovery of the true nature of the phenomena of art criticism: the self-appointed critics of art are nothing but egotists who have never created anything themselves. They pinpoint and nit-pick on any flaws and draw conclusions where such cannot be drawn, causing the hearts of the sincere artists to bleed.

It implies that it is more than fair to observe that when it comes to art in general no judgements can be made whatsoever. An inspiration behind any artistic expression always comes from beyond oneself, out of a sincere desire to convey something to others. The only thing that is really alright to criticise is if the artist's motive is in question, that is if the original purpose is purely commercial and, thus, a con in its essence. Similarly judging is not the same as describing, just as to describe is not the same as to judge.

Interestingly, few other books and films have received as much subtle thrashing (along with appraisals) as Nijinsky's diary and Paul Cox' recent poetic documentary based on it. The point is that a truly worthless piece of literature, or other, never does. There simply seems to be something very provocative about innocence and tenderness to self-important people. And maybe the book CANNOT be appreciated fully by readers with a "lesser purity of heart" and large egos.

4. Other highlights of the wisdom in Nijinsky's diary (quoting freely from memory) are these: "I told my wife we had married for the wrong reasons and that we should re-marry, but this time in the spirit"; and: "People go to church and then drink wine because they have heard it said that it is the blood of Christ. How to explain to a fool that Christ's blood would make one sober rather than drunk?".

icono
Nijinsky, hombre posesionado por el genio, hace algun tiempo visiti en el museo de orsay, en Paris, la exposicion sobre él, de lo mejor al igual que su apasionada vida

Someone's mad and I'm sure it's not me.
This is another book from the barrow on 14th Street. I've read all the other reviews and I have to agree with the reader who said what was the publisher thinking of.

Nijinsky was a wonderful dancer by all accounts. [Though, you know, if he came back tonight and danced Spectre de la Rose at Lincoln Centre we'd be rolling on the floor, screaming with laughter, and Isabella Fokine would be there, too, complaining that he hadn't done the right steps - but hey, don't get me started on her.] I digress.

I am not studying schizophrenia/dementia whatever, so it's all a bit lost on me. I love to read about Nijinsky dancing, and his extraordinary creativity both as a dancer and a choreographer, but his ramblings in this diary make me wonder if a mad person's ramblings worth the ink. Is he Nijinsky or a mad person? I'm sure there are people who read these ramblings and see it as a sign of Nijinsky's genius. I read it with increasing frustration. If someone came and sat next to me on the subway and babbled on like this, I'd move away. [And, believe me, I do.]

I am alone, I'm curious about this, in finding Nijinsky offstage just a tiny bit of a prig? I gained this impression, little by little, from reading his wife's [so bad it's a sin] book, Buckle's "Nijinsky" and, oddly enough, from Bronislava Nijinska's early memoirs. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

bring this back into print!
A marvelous collection of photos, images, and text about this revolutionary woman. More than just a performance artist, Isadora Duncan helped to usher in modernism and her artist contributions are here beautifully captured in text and image. Many of these picutres have never before been printed, at least in material I've seen, and the captioning of the photos provides detailed information. ... Read more

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Unlike so many biographies of dance maestros, Merce Cunningham: Fifty Years offersno litany of substance or psychological abuse. The volume, assembled by thearchivist of Merce Cunningham's world-renowned U.S. company, records and analyzes Cunningham'swork process and documents theprovenance of his modern dance classics.Heavily spiced with biographical detail, Merce Cunningham packages the choreographer's life story in a lovely design that respects his whole body andconveys a rare sense of movement in its mass of still photos. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Merce Cunningham:Fifty Years
An excellent resource. Insightful. Beautiful pictures. Highly recommend for folks in dance education, collaborative artists, school teachers, dancers, and children. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

A pretty helpful book
This was a very helpful book. The only problem I had was I wished it had more pictures. (It does have some, though). I would definatly recomend it, especially to people who know a few baisic things about ballet, but don't know much.

For the Serious Ballet Student; This is #1 on my List!!!
The Language of Ballet is an extraordinary dictionary of terms and definitions for the serious ballet student. I have been dancing Ballet for 10 years and I still didn't know the correct actual deffinitions and spelling of the terms my teacher used but this book shows you everything from pictures to written definitions. I would give this book 6 stars out of 5 if I could. I highly recommend you order this wonderful dictionary of ballet.

Adv Dancers
This is a great book of adv dancers. Not for someone just starting out. Lots of step/words listed here are never taught/used in normal studio programs and may be over some dancers' heads. But it's very informational if you know what the steps are calls.

Great book. Really focuses on things you should know
this book has all tha awnsers. dont know what a pod-aduex is? its all in here. ... Read more

Book Description

There's good news and there's good news. The first is that just about every gorgeous stripper out there has some cellulite. The second is that every woman, no matter what shape, size, color, or age, has the potential for that seemingly effortless swagger that strippers pull off so beautifully.

In this joyful, funny, down-to-earth guide, professional stripper Jessica "Kayla" Conrad demystifies that je ne sais quoi that makes strippers so outrageously hot. It's all about creatively sidestepping your insecurities. From the magic of self-tanner to the all-important naming of the new you, this one-of-a-kind sourcebook arms you with a repertoire of easy, effective tricks for becoming bootylicious.

Whether you're getting your groove on alone in your living room, trying to kick your love life up a notch, or just wondering what it's like to feel as sexy as Britney Spears, Dance Naked is the only book you'll need. ... Read more

Book Description

Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers endure in the American imagination. The charm and grace of their dancing in the ten films they made together, including Top Hat and Swing Time, elicit nostalgia today. Most books about the Astaire-Rogers films focus exclusively on the music and dance scenes, but this book shows that the films are much more than the sum of those scenes, which after all only account for approximately one-third of their films´ running times. Gallafent argues that, contrary to received opinion, the musical numbers are not discrete, generic moments dropped in to enliven the films. Instead, the music and dance routines advance the movies´ themes.
Gallafent shows how dialogue, plotting, and the audience´s perception of this striking professional couple affect the context, and thus meaning, for the song and dance routines. The book examines how the Astaire-Rogers musicals, which were produced and originally viewed as a series, relate to one another and to other musicals of their day. Gallafent also provides an illuminating account of the films Astaire and Rogers made separately during the 1940s before their final reunion in The Barkleys of Broadway. Astaire and Rogers concludes by
tracing the development of their star personas both together and apart, and shows how the films were designed around those personas. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Dead Astaire and Ginger
I adore Fred Astaire and his artful genius. Nobody does it better. Ginger is his best dance-partner, for certain. But this book is the dryest, most boring recitation of dead data that I have ever read. It is almost worthless, even for the most avid Astaire devotee. These two vibrant stars deserve better than this dismal book. And they get it; if you can find, "Astaire Dancing" by John Mueller, the ultimate Astaire/Rogers book, (pricey but spectacular) buy it. It is everything the Astaire/Rogers fan could possibly want.

What a waste
As a huge Astaire/Rogers fan I found this book to be nothing more than a collection of over analyzed run-off with a few interesting tidbits thrown in. There's very little entertainment in the reading. One get's the impression this book was authored by Sigmund Freud. Different maybe, but yuck.

A Look at Two Careers and Images
This book is more about the careers and images of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers from 1934-49 than it is a study of their movies together and their dancing. If you are a dance enthusiast and want to read a detailed account of their dances, this is NOT the book for you.

However, I am not a dance person, but I like classic Hollywood films, and I found this book interesting. It shows how the Fred&Ginger films share some concerns with screwball comedy, how World War II affected the images of both stars, and how stars age in the public eye. Gallafent isn't the most graceful of writers, and I got confused in his discussion of "Once Upon a Honeymoon," but I thought he did a good job connecting the Fred&Giner phenomenon to other developments and careers in classic Hollywood.

An Unusual Premise
Gallafent reviews the films of Astaire and Rogers, both those they made separately and those they made together, from their first pairing through the late forties. Gallafent makes a plausible case for continuity and development from one musical to another. Even as you find his arguments logical and believable, you know Hollywood doesn't work that way. Few people expect or want anything more from an A & R movie than the unalloyed pleasure of the singing and dancing. Gallafent even manages to connect the films Rogers did without Astaire (of which there were many more than I had realized). In spite of his quirky premise, Gallafent is interesting and entertaining throughout, and the book is chock full of stills from the films.

AN IRREPLACEABLE TEAM
When I first moved to New York City, there was a theatre in the West 80's (now demolished, alas) called The New Yorker which was a revival house, pure and simple. To my knowledge, no new movies were ever shown at The New Yorker. I saw my first Depression age films there. Barbara Stanwyck, Carole Lombard, Henry Fonda, Dick Powell, Clark Gable, Claudette Colbert and Preston Sturges were some of my heroes. But it was after a retrospective of all the black and white musicals that Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers did from 1933 ("Flying Down To Rio") til 1939 ("The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle") that I was hooked. I couldn't get enough of Astaire and Rogers.

I think I saw "Top Hat" ten times over a period of that many years. It is still one of my favorite movies, as is "Follow the Fleet" in which Rogers, surprisingly, sings one of her only two solos in all of their films...Irving Berlin's delightful "Let Yourself Go." I always laugh when I see "Shall We Dance" and, to this day, I don't really understand the plot of "Carefree." Nor do I care.

There have been many wonderful books about this dancing, singing, sweetly romantic & comic couple who were obviously a big antidote to the sad, penny-pinching days in the 1930's when most women could not afford a gown seemingly made entirely of feathers nor did most men walk around in tails each night. Floors in most homes were not black and white shellacked diamonds, nor did most people pilot their private airplanes in order to dance the night away in Venice. Astaire and Rogers brought glamour and happiness and sexiness to their public. And they were fun.

Edward Gallefent's relatively brief but thoroughly researched book does not so much put emphasis on the miraculous musical numbers written by the best in the business (besides Berlin, there were scores written by the Gershwins and Jerome Kern and Cole Porter.)nor the choreography by Astaire and his collaborator, Hermes Pan, which has, in my mind, never been bettered.

Instead of concentrating on these numbers, Gellefent has written a scholarly, academic book about the "hidden" symbolic meanings in the gestures, character names, dance steps, etc. which, in his mind, makes this irreplaceable team, "important." Well, they already were "important" before Gellefent examined their every minute move. They were important because they were two of the best entertainers movie nuts like me ever saw and, luckily, we can still see them on videotape and DVD's and, hopefully one day, in a new or renovated theatre devoted to movies of the first half of the twentieth century.

If you are looking for books on Astaire and Rogers, I suggest you try ASTAIRE DANCING by John Mueller or STARRING FRED ASTAIRE by Stanley Green and Burt Goldblatt or, best of all, Arlene Croce's THE FRED ASTAIRE AND GINGER ROGERS BOOK which comes complete with one of those clever "flip-the-pages-quickly-and-watch-them-DANCE." Their like will never pass this way again. ... Read more

Book Description

Mark Morris’ 1988 dance, L’Allegro, il Penseroso, ed il Moderato, set to music by Handel and poems by John Milton, and inspired by watercolors by William Blake, has been called a work of “utopian grandeur,” “a masterpiece of craft, invention, and feeling,” and “in scale and complexity, in a category by itself.” From London to Berkeley to Houston, audiences ecstatically cheer for it. More than 200 photographs capture each of the piece’s 32 interconnected dances and are accompanied by the text of Milton’s interwoven poems, “L’Allegro” and “Il Penseroso,” to which Handel set the music. New Yorker dance critic Joan Acocella provides a new essay; Alastair Macaulay and Wendy Lesser also offer appreciations. An overview of the making of L’Allegro, based on interviews with all of the principal artists and many of Mark Morris’s dancers, provides an unprecedented glimpse at the creation of this modern-day masterpiece. A glorious celebration of one of the great dance masterworks of the twentieth century, the book contains over 200 color and black-and-white photographs plus reproductions of the Blake watercolors from which Mark Morris drew inspiration. ... Read more

Book Description

Leon Bakst (1866-1924) was a painter, illustrator, stage designer and costume designer.He is universally acknowledged for representing a synthesis of creative energy in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.Bakst travelled widely throughout Europe and in 1890 joined the World of Art journal circle which numbered many artists among its members, the most famous being Benois and Diaghliev.This book illustrates the wealth of Bakst's contribution to the world of the theatre and dance.His best known work includes sets for Stravinsky's Firebird, and Weber's Spectre de la Rose. ... Read more

Book Description

Whether used alone or as a companion to Dynamic Alignment Through Imagery, which establishes a foundation for the techniques described here, this unique guide shows you how to combine technical expertise with imagery skills to enrich your expressive repertoire.

This versatile text and reference provides 583 imagery exercises designed to improve dance technique, artistic expression, and performance. More than 160 illustrations highlight images and exercises you can put to use immediately in your movements and choreography.

Part I explores using imagery with improvisation. You’ll find 195 exercises centered on the body’s basic movement images. These improvisational exercises will encourage you to explore new inner landscapes to create and communicate different movement qualities.

Part II provides 314 imagery exercises you can immediately use to improve technique. The book also provides guidelines for applying imagery within the dance class repetoire:

• Floorwork movements
• Standing, walking, running
• Ballet barre exercises
• Swings, arches, spirals
• Upper-body gestures
• Turns and pirouettes
• Jumping
• Partnering

Part III provides imagery tools to enhance or prepare for a performance. You’ll learn how to use imagery to convey information about steps and to clarify the intent and content of a movement. In addition, you’ll find 40 imagery exercises that focus on active imagination and symbolism, the performance environment, and the audience in the creative process.

Part IV presents 34 exercises to help restore and regenerate the body through guided imagery used with massage and touch. The book details the ideokinetic constructive rest position and Sweigard’s nine lines of action.

With Dance Imagery for Technique and Performance, you’ll discover how to use the power of your imagination to enhance performances. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

This book can greatly help for dancers!
As a dancer and a beginner I was struggling with jazz technique for a long time. The imagery approach has helped me greatly to improve my plies and turns, posture and interaction with space. The essence of the imagery approach is to identify yourself with an image. As an example the one that inspired me was "a growing root". I keep coming to this book again and again, when I need to recupirate and find inspiration. It also developed my imagery and gave me another prospective on relationships, energy and dancing. The book has helpful illustrations and photos. A must! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A MUST READ FOR TRUE WORSHIPPER; LEADERSHIP AND LAITY ALIKE
I am very excited about this text becuase it is not written just for the dancer or the sacred artist, but for anyone who desires an encounter with God in their temple. It contains the clearest, easiest-to-understand material regarding the purpose and power of movement ministry. Leadership and laity alike will experience and comprehend how the WORD can become flesh and delivered to the Body of Christ in a movement message. They will learn how, through the body (our temple), God allows the Word, to shatter the windows of darkness, pierce the principalites, and bring deliverance to souls in our nation and the world. I would highly reccommed this text to everyone because of it's sound biblical teaching on the call of dance as ministry , and the rightful place of the Arts in the Body of Christ. Enjoy! ... Read more

Book Description

In this candid biography, the beloved dancer, choreographer, actor, and director is depicted for the first time not just as the genius and star whom millions still watch with awe, but as the complex and difficult man his family, intimates, and colleagues knew. Documenting Kelly's astonishing gifts--his innovations in movie choreography in such films as An American in Paris and Singin' in the Rain--the book also examines his late career struggles, stormy relationships, and political convictions. Structured as a retrospective of the star's life and artistry, this multi-dimensional portrait is the first to be drawn since Kelly died in 1996, and includes rare photos. Alvin Yudkoff, a producer of television, film, and video documentaries, is also a published fiction author. He lives in Water Mill, Long Island, New York. ... Read more

Reviews (18)

An Semi-Adequate Biography
I agree with many of the other reviews of this book, there has been no author that has really captured the life of Gene Kelly. I truly wish that Kelly's wife, who was working on a book with Gene at the time of his death, would write about this complex genius. However, this book does a "pretty good" job at telling us about Gene Kelly.

The best part of this book is the early years in Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania. The author goes in great detail about the early years, but after "Singin' In The Rain"(1953), he condenses the next 45 years into 40 pages. I think Gene's life deserved a more thorough examination. Gene did some magnificant work after 1953, such as "Invitation To The Dance" and "Xanadu" (which the author despises), not to mention Mr. Kelly's many works for charity.

There is also some blaring errors like the mention that Vera-Ellen attended the 1985 AFI show for Kelly. She could not have because she died in 1981 and from the 1960s on was a recluse. But again, all in all, the bio is not that bad. To be honest, it would do until a better one comes along. Hopefully one will, because the memory of Gene Kelly deserves better...

POSTSCRIPT
This is a postscript to my review titled "The Book Who Couldn't Dance." For me, the last straw comes on Page 218, when Yudkoff botches his description of the "Singin' in the Rain" number. It's one thing for Yudkoff to botch the numbers in LIVING IN A BIG WAY, which after all is a fairly obscure film -- though NOT impossible to view -- but to botch the most famous Kelly number in SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, the most famous Kelly film of all time?! Well, how can you trust ANYTHING in the book after that?

THE BOOK WHO COULDN'T DANCE
I'm up to page 185, and fully intend to finish the whole book, but I thought I'd look it up here at Amazon.com to see if I could learn anything about the author's credentials -- the paperback offers none -- and, also, see how other readers had felt about the book. For me, it started strong with the Pittsburgh material and New York days, the formative years of Kelly's life with which I was so unfamiliar. But the deeper I've gotten into the book, the more I've discovered such careless mistakes (see the other Reader Reviews) that I can't help but worry about the veracity in the earlier passages as well. (Incidentally, one whopper which no one else has mentioned is that Yudkoff completely reverses the production sequence of THE PIRATE and EASTER PARADE, which in turn leads to many misstatements of fact.) I was willing to tolerate the infamous AFI interior monlogues -- at least, unlike Reagan's biographer, Yudkoff didn't attempt to pass himself off as one of Kelly's dancing partners -- but by this point in the book I'm finding myself very annoyed with all the sloppy mistakes. And now, thanks to the Reader Reviews, I see that Yudkoff is going to leave me in the lurch after 1952, which is frankly infuriating. And, yes, disappointing.

POSTSCRIPT: I kept on reading, and it got even worse. Yudkoff's description of the title number in SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, incredibly, is erroneous in its description. It's one thing for Yudkoff to fudge the descriptions of the dances in LIVING IN A BIG WAY, an obscure -- though not IMPOSSIBLE to view -- Kelly movie, but to blow the facts on his most famous number in his most famous film...!

Learned About Gene Kelly
I'm glad I read this book. I've admired Gene Kelly's dancing and his movies, and I learned enough from this book to really enhance my appreciation the next time I watch his work. I enjoyed the glimpses provided by this book of Broadway, Hollywood, and politics of his time. It was fun to get to know some of the famous characters Kelly encountered, and imagine what the evenings might have been like at Gene and Betsy Kelly's open houses.

That having been said, the book clearly could have been more. In most of the text, I felt like I was observing Kelly from a distance, seeing interesting pieces of him that begged for more elaboration, more insight. I had a hard time trusting the device the author used to get us closer to him, Gene's internal dialog while at the awards show, because it seemed to go beyond what the author could have known about him, based on the rest of the text. And the writing itself could have used closer editing: I found unclear sentences, erratic paragraph transitions, and the same Gene Kelly quote repeated in the space of about ten pages.

Not having read anything else substantial about Gene Kelly, I would recommend this book as a good way to learn a lot about him.

A mixed bag
I don't know why I'm writing a review since I agree with most everybody's comments, but perhaps I can help you decide if this book is for you. First off, this book is both good and bad. Good because it is the first book to be written about Gene Kelly in quite a while, but bad because the author uses techniques and makes little mistakes that weaken his work. Many readers complain that Yudkoff pretends to know what Gene was thinking during certain points. Indeed, Yudkoff does use a technique that makes the book more of a novel than a strict biography. For instance, he doesn't use the "In 1940, this happened. Later that same year, this happened. In early 1941 he did this." Yudkoff creates conversations that he has no knowledge of actually occuring but I believe he did this to make the biography more readable and enjoyable. Some parts I disagreed with, but I can see why he uses this approach. One thing that hurts Yudkoff's work is his fact checking. For instance, Gene Kelly was quoted as saying that Fred Astaire retired after his wife's death. This was not true, Astaire retired years before his wife passed away. What is true is that Gene Kelly was wrong when he said this. However, if the author had done any research and doublechecked sources, he could have added a note something like "although Gene said this, it was not true that Fred retired because of his wife's death" or something along those lines. Its not a major mistake but I think it shows that Yudkoff may not have researched his topic thoroughly. In another instance, Yudkoff states that Frank Sinatra, a friend and costar of Gene's, almost intentionally angered studio head Louis B. Mayer so he would be fired and able to make "From Here To Eternity". The truth is that Sinatra was fired and didn't make "Eternity" until a year or two later, the film hadn't even been mentioned at the time he was released from MGM. I'm sure that Gene Kelly knew this and its another example of the author not knowing his subject well enough. Good biographers are able to tell you about the lives of people close to their subject, as both Fred Astaire and Frank Sinatra were to Gene Kelly. Like I said, the fact that Yudkoff doesn't know these things shows a lack of research. Yudkoff also doesn't provide notes, which I always appreciate in a biography. It lets the reader know what sources were checked, who said what, etc. For instance, if unsure about a quote you can check the notes and see if it came from a close friend, acquaintance, or a different biographer. The good side, as mentioned earlier, is that this is the first biography of legendary song and dance man Gene Kelly to come out in a long time. Kelly's life is interesting not only for films but also for his time in history. He was a committed liberal and during the times of McCarthy this could prove a liability. Though this was an interesting period, it was only one part of Kelly's life. Unfortunately, Yudkoff barely talks about his later life. There is not even a mention of Gene's third child being born. I would have appreciated more detail on Kelly's very happy second marriage, but Yudkoff barely gives any.

In conclusion, this biography does leave a lot to be desired. It is by no means a definitive book. However, its a decent introduction to Kelly and is the most commercially available bio on him. I recommend that you read it with an open mind, try to corroborate with other books, and if you can find Clive Hirschhorn's excellent biography of Gene Kelly. Its hard to find, but its more fulfilling and accurate than this. ... Read more

Book Description

The definitive collection of great writings on music of the nineteenth century. Forty-five years after the appearance of the first edition, Oliver Strunk's monumental anthology of writings about music has been thoroughly revised and extended by a team of scholars working under the direction of musicologist Leo Treitler. For this new edition, seven specialists in music history have replaced some selections, added others, contributed new translations, and provided additional notes and introductions. With this series, readers can now acquire a comprehensive picture of Western musical thought and ideas through the ages. ... Read more

Book Description

Dance Technique and Injury Prevention has established itself as the key reference for everyone involved in dance injury and treatment, physical therapy, and dance instruction. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Invaluable resource for therapists working with dancers
This is an indispensable resource for the physical therapist or Pilates instructor who works with dancers. It covers functional anatomy as it relates to the dancer, teaches the analysis of posture and movement as it relates to the classical dancer, the typical injuries sustained by dancers and their management and rehabilitation.

This text, combined with Sally Fitt's, Dance Kinesiology, should be in every therapist's library. If the book has one fault, it is that is focuses almost exclusively on classical dancers.

If you teach Dance , you must have this !
This book written by Justin Howse, Consultant Orthepaedic Surgeon to the Royal Ballet Schools, The Royal Academy of Dancing and the Remedial Dance Clinic, London , and also by Shirley Hancock, Principal Physiotherapist to the Royal Ballet Schools, the Royal Academy of Dancing and the Remedial Dance Clinic ,London.

This book is a study reading requirement for the Royal Academy of Dancing Anatomy paper.

The foreward by Dame Ninette de Valois, says it all really. "This book gives us the opportunity to indulge in some serious reflection. It is full of highly technical observations on movement as related to the world of ballet and is accompanied by helpful instructions. A great deal of it should be rewarding to students, dancers, teachers, repetiteurs and ballet staff in general. I dare to add that in my opionion, it is also food for thought for choreographers. Today it is not customary for choreographers to give either scientific or practical thought to their choreographic demands. Let us recall that a composer has to remember to keep within the range of a singer's voice. It therefore seems right for a choreographer to study more carefully not only the limitation of dancer's limbs but also the limitation of their general stamina ."

You will never regret spending the money on this book.I refer to this book often. It has excellent photographs also.

I am fortunate in that one of my friends is a physiotherapist who works at the local medical centre.This book provides excellent back up. ... Read more