Friday 25 March 2016

The recollection about Isadora Duncan of ballerina Tamara Karsavina from her autobiography "Theatre Street. The Reminiscences Of Tamara Karsavina".

Tamara Karsavina,1920. Bassano Ltd.
 © National Portrait Gallery, London.
  Tamara Karsavina was one of famous Russian ballerinas,the member of Sergei Diaghilev troupe and participant of "Ballets Russes", the teacher of dancer Margo Fonteyn. In 1918, after marrying the british diplomat, she emigrated to Europe. She tried herself in a movie actress, one of her films is " Wege zu Kraft und Schönheit - Ein Film über moderne Körperkultur". In 1930 she published her book of memoirs "Theatre Street" in London, in which she shares her impression and thoughts about Isadora Duncan :
 The great sensation caused in the artistic world by the first appearance of Isadora Duncan was still fresh when, in the spring of 1907, Fokine produced his Eunice this time for inclusion in the repertoire.
 Isadora had rapidly conquered the Petersburg theatrical world. There were, of course, always the reactionary balletomanes, to whom the idea of a barefoot dancer seemed to deny the first principles of what they held to be sacred in art. This, however, was far from being the general opinion, and a desire for novelty was in the air.
  I remember that the first time I saw her dance I fell completely under her sway. It never occurred to me that there was the slightest hostility between her art and ours. There seemed room for both, and each had much that it could learn to advantage from the other. 

Saturday 19 March 2016

Photo with signature of Isadora Duncan at Palm Beach, Florida, 1917. Date of autograph unknown.

Image Courtesy of Skinner, Inc.
The inscription says:  To Percy McKay, " Poor me at Palm Beach".
Percy McKay was American poet, playwright and Isadora's friend. One of his known works is "The Scarecrow: Or, The Glass of Truth; a Tragedy of the Ludicrous".
Photo like this, but with another inscription you can watch here

Thursday 17 March 2016

Isadora Duncan's series of photos in Greek dress. Berlin c.1903

Universitätsbibliothek JCS Frankfurt am Main
Universitätsbibliothek JCS Frankfurt am Main
                                                     Another photo you can see  here.                                                                                                   

Monday 7 March 2016

"Isadora Duncan's Russian days and her last years in France" by Irma Duncan, Allan Ross McDougall. Victor Gollancz LTD,London,1929.

This is so good when information about Isadora Duncan become available to public time after time. I hope you would find this link usefull.

Thursday 3 March 2016

Isadora Duncan dancing. Approximately the begining of 1900s.Elvira studio of Munich.

Library of Congress. Elvira studio of Munich
It's a good thing when such photos become available in good quality.

Tuesday 1 March 2016