To highlight a unique exhibit of international dance, “Postage Paid,” the museum hosted several cultural festivals. India Day, Greek Day, Hispanic Day, Italy Day and others were public events that celebrated the cultures through their dance, music, art and food. The annual celebration of National Dance Day has attracted large numbers to the museum for the fun of moving and dancing together. Well over two hundred people came for the Black History Month Celebration. Dancers’ Health Day brought together several top professionals in the health, nutrition and fitness fields to speak about the specific needs of dancers’ bodies. For the exhibit “En Pointe,” a pointe shoe–decorating contest inspired young and old alike to submit dozens of elaborately embellished shoes.126
The National Museum of Dance celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary in 2011. Many people returned to the museum for the event, including Alison Moore and other former directors. Ms. Moore exclaimed, “I am so thrilled the National Museum of Dance still exists and happy that people are working so hard to keep it going.”127 Everyone present was gratified to see that the National Museum of Dance is thriving and well on the way to becoming a preeminent source for educating the public and showcasing all styles of dance.
India Day dancers Francesca Limoli and Rosalind Elliot and musicians Veena Chandra, Devesh Chandra and Jessica Taffet. Photo by Ruby Whitney.
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
The members of the board of directors of the National Museum of Dance have been prominent dance enthusiasts who have come together to support this unique museum. Mrs. Marylou Whitney and Lewis Swyer both served for many years, and second-generation Whitneys and Swyers have followed in their parents’ footsteps. Mrs. Heather (Whitney) Mabee was president of the board for six years. She commented, “My parents had a tremendous love of dance. I felt I had to continue their legacy.”128
There has always been a member of the Swyer family on the board of directors. Museum founder Lewis Swyer served until his death in 1988 and was followed by his son Edward Swyer, who served from 1988 to 2002. Carol Swyer replaced her brother and is still an active board member. Both have worked to honor their father’s vision and dedication to dance. Carol Swyer explains:
My father, Lewis A. Swyer, was a force! He was passionate about the arts, especially dance. He knew how to get things done, and I grew up watching him make things happen. When my father walked me through this abandoned, deteriorating bath house, I saw that sparkle in his eyes as he envisioned his dream of a museum devoted solely to dance, and I had no doubt that it would become a reality. He passed his passion—the love of dance—on to me. It is a privilege to continue the Swyer family’s support of the National Museum of Dance.129
The current president of the board of directors is Michele Riggi, a former dancer, performer and dance teacher. Ms. Riggi has worked tirelessly to increase the museum’s membership and visibility. As president, Ms. Riggi formed an excellent working board of professionals with diverse specialties. Under her leadership, the annual galas have brought exciting dance personalities to our community. These summer events have become the primary source of funding for the museum.
In 2011, Michele Riggi and the National Museum of Dance were honored for “Contributions to the World of Dance” at the Career Transitions for Dancers annual benefit in New York City.130
I have a real passion for dance. The National Museum of Dance now has a dynamic Board of Directors and a wonderful staff. We all share the same passion, the same dream, the same vision. We must continue this model because it makes the National Museum of Dance strong. We are moving forward! There were important women from the past I never got to know—Pat Peterson, Mae Banner, Alison Moore—who had a profound effect on the museum, and I wish they could have mentored me. I am so fortunate to have my dear friend Mrs. Mary Lou Whitney as my mentor and inspiration. I am proud to continue her vision and dream, and I work for the National Museum of Dance in her honor.131
THE MR. AND MRS. CORNELIUS VANDERBILT WHITNEY HALL OF FAME
The Hall of Fame at the National Museum of Dance was named to honor the philanthropists who believed so strongly in the value of the museum. The Mr. and Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Hall of Fame opened in the summer of 1987. The first group of honorees was inducted at a ceremony attended by those whose hard work made the dream a reality. The original honoree exhibit in the area adjoining the Hall of Fame was titled, “Shaping the American Dance Dream.”
A number of Hall of Fame honorees, such as Merce Cunningham, Paul Taylor and Trisha Brown, were inducted while their modern dance companies were performing in Saratoga Springs.
Candidates for the Mr. and Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Hall of Fame are nominated by a national committee. The nominating committee includes all living honorees, professional dance directors, historians, dance writers and professors. An effort is made to balance the variety of disciplines represented, and both posthumous and living candidates are considered. Honorees represent a variety of professionals who have made a major impact on dance in America. The chosen nominee is ultimately confirmed by the entire board of directors.
NATIONAL MUSEUM OF DANCE
Honorees of the Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Hall of Fame
1987
Fred Astaire (1899–1987)
George Balanchine (1904–1983)
Agnes DeMille (1905–1993)
Isadora Duncan (1877–1927)
Katherine Dunham (1909–2006)
Martha Graham (1894–1991)
Doris Humphrey (1895–1958)
Lincoln Kirstein (1907–1996)
Catherine Littlefield (1905–1951)
Bill “Bojangles” Robinson (1878–1949)
Ted Shawn (1891–1972)
The Leland Opera House. Saratoga Room Collection, Saratoga Springs Public Library.
Souvenir program of the first Floral Fête, 1894. Saratoga Room Collection, Saratoga Springs Public Library.
Souvenir program of the third Floral Fête, 1896. Saratoga Room Collection, Saratoga Springs Public Library.
Missa Brevis choreography by José Limón, performed by the José Limón Dance Company with Skidmore dancers outside in the Surrey Gardens. Photo by Steve J. Nealey.
Bharatanatyam dancer, Francesca Limoli (2012). Photo by Sam Brook.
Finding Balance choreography by Mary Harney. Photo by Gosh Gerritson.
Tempus Fugit choreography by Denise Warner Limoli. Photo by Steve J. Nealey.
Balls choreography by Debra J. Fernandez. Photo by Steve J. Nealey.
Keeping Company with Cage choreography by Debra J. Fernandez. Photo by Sam Brook.
Swan Lake, Act II staged by Denise Warner Limoli. Photo by Steve J. Nealey.
Complete This Work Which We Began choreography and film by Rubén Graciani. Photo by Erin Kobor.
“Steps in the Street” from Chronicle choreography by Martha Graham. Photo by Joe Ritter.
Mary Collins of Schenectady poses backstage with Edward Villella before Harlequinade, choreography by George Balanchine. ©The George Balanchine Trust. Photo provided by Mary (Collins) Harney.
Skidmore dancers prepare for a performance at Kaatsbaan International Dance Center. Photo by Mary DiSanto-Rose.
At night on the lawn of the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. Photo provided by the Saratoga Performing Arts Center.
Students of the Saratoga City Ballet School. Photo provided by Julie Gedalecia.
Students from the Saratoga Ballet Academy. Victorian Sketches by director David Otto. Photo by Teresa Zielinsky.
Denise Warner Limoli, American Ballet Theatre. Photo by J. Heffernan.
Iraida Volodina and Ricardo Sopin of Arthur Murray Dance Studio. Photo provided by Leslie Anne LaGuardia.
Kim Vanyo of Khymanyo Studio designing the tutu for Firebird. Photo by Raul Martinez.
The National Museum of Dance. The sculpture on the front lawn was given to the National Museum of Dance by Mrs. Ann Swyer in 1989. Sculpture Athena by Judith Brown. Photo by Ruby Whitney.
&
nbsp; National Museum of Dance foyer and Hall of Fame. Photo by Ruby Whitney.
Rehearsal of Apollo for Saratoga Dances II. Photo by Anthony Tassarotti. Apollo choreography by George Balanchine. ©The George Balanchine Trust.
New York City Ballet dancers relax onstage at Zankel Music Center during rehearsal for Saratoga Dances II. Photo by Anthony Tassarotti.
Nacre Dance Company. Photo by Steve J. Nealey.
Swan Song choreography by Debra J. Fernandez, Saratoga ArtsFest. Photo by Steve J. Nealey.
Da Pacem by Denise Warner Limoli. Photo by Steve J. Nealy.
Michele and Ronald Riggi. Photo by Imagine! Photography.
By Ruben Graciani. Photo by Steve J. Nealy.
Saratoga City Ballet in The Nutcracker. Photo by John Sullivan.
New York City Ballet ballerina Violette Verdy poses at the construction site of the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. Photo by Martha Swope.
Ruth St. Denis (1879–1968)
Charles Weidman (1901–1975)
1988
Busby Berkeley (1895–1976)
Lucia Chase (1897–1986)
Hanya Holm (1893–1992)
John Martin (1893–1985)
Anthony Tudor (1908–1987)
1989
Jerome Robbins (1918–1998)
1992
Alvin Ailey (1931–1989)
1993
Merce Cunningham (1919–2009)
1994
Bronislava Nijinska (1891–1972)
1995
Paul Taylor (1930– )
1997
José Limón (1908–1972)
1998
Anna Sokolow (1910–2000)
1999
Barbara Karinska (1886–1983)
Arthur Mitchell (1934– )
2000
Trisha Brown (1936– )
Robert Joffrey (1930–1988)
Alwin Nikolais (1910–1993)
2001
Fayard Nicholas (1914–2006)
Harold Nicholas (1921–2000)
2002
Edwin Denby (1903–1983)
Leonide Massine (1896–1979)
2004
Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971)
2006
Arthur and Kathryn Murray
The New Dance Group (1932)
2007
Bob Fosse (1927–1987)
Bill T. Jones (1952– )
2008
Peter Martins (1946– )
2009
Marge Champion (1919– )
Suzanne Farrell (1945– )
Frankie Manning (1914–2009)
Tommy Tune (1939– )
Edward Villella (1936– )
2010
Michael Jackson (1958–2009)
2011
Frederic Franklin (1914– )
Oliver Smith (1918–1994)
2012
Ben Vereen (1946– )
2013
Judith Jamison (1943– )
Anna Pavlova (1881–1931)
THE LEWIS A. SWYER SCHOOL FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
Edward Swyer said of his father, “He felt that dance was the most creative, the most noble of the performing arts. If you couldn’t dance, you could do the next best thing; that is, appreciate and support it.”132
Lewis Swyer’s vision was that of a living dance museum, not just a static collection of exhibits and galleries. He imagined a location where the public could observe dance in progress—the training, the rehearsals and the creative process. His dream was realized one year after his death, when the L.A. Swyer Company began construction of the Lewis A. Swyer Dance Studios, located directly behind the museum. To complement the beautiful museum building, the studios were also designed and built in the Craftsman style.133 This $1 million structure housed three state-of-the-art studios with flexible walls, marley-covered sprung floors, sound systems and observation windows for the public. Ample dressing rooms and a central lounge area for dancers and visitors completed the facility.
Lewis A. Swyer (1918–1988). Courtesy of the Swyer family.
The Lewis A. Swyer School for the Performing Arts opened in 1992. The facility became the home of the New York State Summer School of the Arts Schools of Ballet and Modern Dance. Auditions, master classes, lectures and demonstrations by visiting companies were also held there.
The School of the Arts, a program of the National Museum of Dance, opened in the Swyer Studios in 2008. Headed by Raul Martinez, a large faculty teaches classical ballet and a unique variety of styles of dance to appeal to dancers of all ages and experience levels. The vitality of the School of the Arts ensures that the National Museum of Dance is a living museum where hundreds of students are dancing.
One of the most influential business leaders in the region, Lewis A. Swyer was a passionate advocate for the arts, especially dance. His construction company built the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. Swyer joined the board of directors in 1968 and served as chairman and president of the Saratoga Performing Arts Center from 1974 until 1988. He also envisioned and co-founded the National Museum of Dance, where the Lewis A. Swyer School for the Performing Arts was built and named in his honor. In 2012, Lewis Swyer’s legacy was celebrated with an engraved star on the Saratoga Performing Arts Center Walk of Fame.
Chapter 6
THE OFFICE OF SPECIAL PROGRAMS, SKIDMORE COLLEGE
On the old campus, Skidmore College had few programs that regularly utilized the facilities during the summer. Oleg Briansky’s summer ballet school was among the first in the 1960s. After the North Broadway campus opened, Skidmore organized the Office of Special Programs to identify and solicit a variety of quality programs. Originally, this office was to administer all programs and residencies on campus during the summer, but its responsibilities quickly expanded to year-round activities.
MODERN DANCE SUMMER RESIDENCIES
In 1984, Beverly D’Anne of the New York State Council on the Arts met with Professor Mary DiSanto-Rose, Pat Peterson and Donald McCormack. They discussed the possibility of establishing a new residency program on campus that would enable New York modern dance companies to reach upstate communities. The Office of Special Programs chose the José Limón Dance Company for its first six-week summer dance residency. In addition to helping the company create the curriculum, Summer Programs managed all student registration, housing, meals and transportation. The success of this initial program led to an annual summer modern dance residency program at Skidmore College.
Mark Morris with Skidmore dance major Cristina Arés (1996). Photo by Emma Dodge Hanson.
For three weeks in June, visiting modern dance companies create new works and teach technique classes, repertory and choreography. In many cases, college students who participate in the program have the option to receive academic credit. Students are permitted to observe the professional dancers in rehearsals, and they attend the company’s lecture demonstrations and performances. At the end of the session, students present a public showing of the repertoire they have learned and a sampling of their own choreography.
Skidmore College has gained considerable prestige due to the relationship it has developed with many of the modern dance choreographers and dance companies of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. The list of these resident companies includes virtually all the major names and creative pioneers of modern dance. Some of these companies have returned to campus for several summers, and many participated in the Department of Dance’s January program.134
Skidmore Special Programs has brought together artists from different disciplines and has encouraged collaboration among them while they are on campus. For example, Garth Fagan’s full-length work Griot was created with trumpeter Winton Marsalis. Ronald K. Brown dancers performed with jazz singer Nnenna Freelon. In 2012, Bill T. Jones dancers and Anne Bogart’s SITI Company actors presented Rite of Spring, a work in progress to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the ballet.
Bill T. Jones with summer modern dance prog
ram scholarship students. Photo by Maria McColl.
Three of the resident choreographers used their time on campus to develop major dance works for Broadway. Bill T. Jones worked on his award winning show, Fela!, Garth Fagan choreographed sections of The Lion King and Lar Lubovich created much of The Red Shoes while their companies were at Skidmore.
In the early 2000s, the McCormack Visiting Artist-Scholar in Residence was established. During the fall and spring semesters, artists have interacted directly with students and faculty by giving lectures, readings, showings and performances. Thus far, two dancers have been engaged for this prestigious residency. Dancer and choreographer Trisha Brown presented “Dance and Art,” a collaborative project at the Tang Museum. Skidmore’s curriculum program for all freshmen, First Year Experience, incorporated the dance and writings of choreographer Bill T. Jones. At the time, he was preparing Fondly Do We Hope…Fervently Do We Pray, a major dance-theater piece inspired by Abraham Lincoln. All freshmen students shared readings, viewings and a lecture presentation with Jones.135
The Office of Special Programs administers all conferences and a multitude of other activities throughout the year. In the summer of 2008, the Society of Dance History Scholars Thirty-first Annual Conference was co-hosted by the Dance Department and Special Programs. Dance faculty and several dance alumni presented a panel on the evolution of dance at Skidmore College and the impact dance at Skidmore has had on their lives.
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