Pearl Lang
Encyclopedia
Pearl Lang was an American
dancer, choreographer and teacher renowned as an interpreter and propagator of the choreography style of Martha Graham
, and also for her own longtime dance company, the Pearl Lang Dance Theater.
, Pearl Lack began her dance training as a child and studied acting at the Goodman Theatre
. In 1938, at the age of 17, she enrolled in a program for gifted students at the University of Chicago
, where she remained until 1941, the year of her move to New York
. Born Pearl Lack, she adopted
the stage name
, Pearl Lang, she studied with Martha Graham and Louis Horst
and joined the Martha Graham Dance Company where she remained as a soloist from 1942 to 1952, and as a guest artist from 1954 through the late 1970s. She was the first woman to dance Martha Graham's roles in seven dances of Graham repertoire which she performed intermittently for thirty years to critical and audience acclaim. She was an original cast member in Deaths and Entrances, Punch and the Judy, Land Be Bright, Imagined Wing, Diversion of Angels, Canticle for Innocent Comedians, Ardent Song, Dark Meadow, Night Journey, Eye of Anguish, and Appalachian Spring. She was also a featured dancer in Broadway productions of Carousel (1945–47), Finian's Rainbow, and Peer Gynt.
In 1952, she founded her own company, Pearl Lang Dance Theater, for which she choreographed sixty-three works, thirty-six of which were based on Jewish themes
. She choreographed for film, opera, and television and her works have been performed by the Dutch National Ballet
, Boston Ballet
, and the Batsheva Dance Company
of Israel. In 1970, she invited Alvin Ailey
and his company to share a three-story building with her dance company at 229 East 59th Street in Manhattan where, together, they co-directed the American Dance Center as a joint school. Pearl Lang Dance Theater's last New York season was held at the Danny Kaye
Playhouse in 2001.
Among the many citations and awards that Pearl Lang received are two Guggenheim Fellowship
s for Choreography; the Martha Graham Award for Performance and Choreography; The Workmen's Circle Award for her contribution to Jewish Culture through Dance; the Achievement Award from the Artists and Writers for Peace in the Middle East; the Achievement Award from the Congress for Jewish Culture; the Cultural Achievement Award from the National Foundation for Jewish Culture
; Queens College Award for Excellence in Jewish Art, and from the Juilliard School
, an Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts
on May 19, 1995. In 1997, she was inducted into the Hall of Fame by the International Committee for The Dance Library of Israel. In 2001 at the American Dance Festival
she received the award for "Lifetime Distinguished Teaching".
As a teacher, Pearl Lang reached generations of young dancers. She served on the faculties of Yale University
from 1954 to 1968, Juilliard School of Music from 1952 to 1969, Connecticut College
and Neighborhood Playhouse
from 1963 to 1968, and the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance up until shortly before her death. Among her many students were singer Madonna and choreographer Pina Bausch
. http://www.eonline.com/celebrities/profile/?uuid=c5229112-58df-43fc-9c77-885b3eb7287a
Pearl Lang was recuperating from hip surgery when she died of a heart attack in Manhattan
, three months before her 88th birthday. She lived on the Upper West Side
with her husband, actor Joseph Wiseman
, to whom she had been married since 1964. Wiseman himself died eight months later, on October 19.
Legend, Rites 1953
And Joy is My Witness, Nightflight 1954
Sky Chant 1957
Persephone 1958
Black Marigolds 1959
Shirah 1960
Apansionada 1961
Broken Dialogues 1962
Shore Bourne 1964
Dismembered Fable 1965
Pray for Dark Birds 1966
Tongues of Fire 1967
Piece for Brass 1969
Moonways and Dark Tides 1970
Sharjuhm 1971
At That Point in Place and Time 1973
The Possessed 1974
Prairie Steps 1975
Bach Rondelays, I Never Saw Another Butterfly, A Seder Night, Kaddish 1977
Icarus, Cantigas Ladino 1978
Notturno 1980
Gypsy Ballad, Hanele the Orphan, The Tailor's Megilleh 1981
Psalm, Song of Songs 1983
Tehillim 1984
Dance Panel #7 2000
The Time is Out of Joint 2001
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
dancer, choreographer and teacher renowned as an interpreter and propagator of the choreography style of Martha Graham
Martha Graham
Martha Graham was an American modern dancer and choreographer whose influence on dance has been compared with the influence Picasso had on modern visual arts, Stravinsky had on music, or Frank Lloyd Wright had on architecture.She danced and choreographed for over seventy years...
, and also for her own longtime dance company, the Pearl Lang Dance Theater.
Career
A native of ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Pearl Lack began her dance training as a child and studied acting at the Goodman Theatre
Goodman Theatre
The Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of Chicago theatre, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization...
. In 1938, at the age of 17, she enrolled in a program for gifted students at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, where she remained until 1941, the year of her move to New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Born Pearl Lack, she adopted
the stage name
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
, Pearl Lang, she studied with Martha Graham and Louis Horst
Louis Horst
Louis Horst was a choreographer, composer, and pianist...
and joined the Martha Graham Dance Company where she remained as a soloist from 1942 to 1952, and as a guest artist from 1954 through the late 1970s. She was the first woman to dance Martha Graham's roles in seven dances of Graham repertoire which she performed intermittently for thirty years to critical and audience acclaim. She was an original cast member in Deaths and Entrances, Punch and the Judy, Land Be Bright, Imagined Wing, Diversion of Angels, Canticle for Innocent Comedians, Ardent Song, Dark Meadow, Night Journey, Eye of Anguish, and Appalachian Spring. She was also a featured dancer in Broadway productions of Carousel (1945–47), Finian's Rainbow, and Peer Gynt.
In 1952, she founded her own company, Pearl Lang Dance Theater, for which she choreographed sixty-three works, thirty-six of which were based on Jewish themes
Secular Jewish culture
Secular Jewish culture embraces several related phenomena; above all, it is the international culture of secular communities of Jewish people, but it can also include the cultural contributions of individuals who identify as secular Jews...
. She choreographed for film, opera, and television and her works have been performed by the Dutch National Ballet
Dutch National Ballet
Dutch National Ballet was formed in 1961 when the Amsterdams Ballet and the Nederlands Ballet merged. The company has been directed by Sonia Gaskell , Rudi van Dantzig , Wayne Eagling and is currently directed by Ted Brandsen. It is the largest dance company in the Netherlands and attracts many...
, Boston Ballet
Boston Ballet
Boston Ballet, founded in 1963 by E. Virginia Williams, was the first professional repertory ballet company in New England. Boston Ballet’s national and international reputation developed under the leadership of Artistic Directors Violette Verdy , Bruce Marks , and Anna-Marie Holmes...
, and the Batsheva Dance Company
Batsheva Dance Company
The Batsheva Dance Company is an internationally acclaimed dance company based in Tel Aviv, Israel. It was founded by Martha Graham and Baroness Batsheva De Rothschild in 1964....
of Israel. In 1970, she invited Alvin Ailey
Alvin Ailey
Alvin Ailey, Jr. was an American choreographer and activist who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York. Ailey is credited with popularizing modern dance and revolutionizing African-American participation in 20th century concert dance...
and his company to share a three-story building with her dance company at 229 East 59th Street in Manhattan where, together, they co-directed the American Dance Center as a joint school. Pearl Lang Dance Theater's last New York season was held at the Danny Kaye
Danny Kaye
Danny Kaye was a celebrated American actor, singer, dancer, and comedian...
Playhouse in 2001.
Among the many citations and awards that Pearl Lang received are two Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
s for Choreography; the Martha Graham Award for Performance and Choreography; The Workmen's Circle Award for her contribution to Jewish Culture through Dance; the Achievement Award from the Artists and Writers for Peace in the Middle East; the Achievement Award from the Congress for Jewish Culture; the Cultural Achievement Award from the National Foundation for Jewish Culture
National Foundation for Jewish Culture
The Foundation for Jewish Culture is the leading advocate for Jewish cultural life and creativity in the United States....
; Queens College Award for Excellence in Jewish Art, and from the Juilliard School
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
, an Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts
Doctor of Fine Arts
Doctor of Fine Arts is doctoral degree in fine arts, typically given as an honorary degree . The degree is typically conferred to honor the recipient who has made a contribution to society in the arts...
on May 19, 1995. In 1997, she was inducted into the Hall of Fame by the International Committee for The Dance Library of Israel. In 2001 at the American Dance Festival
American Dance Festival
The American Dance Festival is a six and four-week school for dance and a six-week summer festival of modern dance performances, currently held at Duke University and the Durham Performing Arts Center in Durham, North Carolina....
she received the award for "Lifetime Distinguished Teaching".
As a teacher, Pearl Lang reached generations of young dancers. She served on the faculties of Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
from 1954 to 1968, Juilliard School of Music from 1952 to 1969, Connecticut College
Connecticut College
Connecticut College is a private liberal arts college located in New London, Connecticut.The college was founded in 1911, as Connecticut College for Women, in response to Wesleyan University closing its doors to women...
and Neighborhood Playhouse
Neighborhood Playhouse
The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre is an actor training school at 340 East 54th Street in New York City, generally associated with the Meisner technique of Sanford Meisner.-History:...
from 1963 to 1968, and the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance up until shortly before her death. Among her many students were singer Madonna and choreographer Pina Bausch
Pina Bausch
Philippina "Pina" Bausch was a German performer of modern dance, choreographer, dance teacher and ballet director...
. http://www.eonline.com/celebrities/profile/?uuid=c5229112-58df-43fc-9c77-885b3eb7287a
Pearl Lang was recuperating from hip surgery when she died of a heart attack in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, three months before her 88th birthday. She lived on the Upper West Side
Upper West Side
The Upper West Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, that lies between Central Park and the Hudson River and between West 59th Street and West 125th Street...
with her husband, actor Joseph Wiseman
Joseph Wiseman
Joseph Wiseman was a Canadian theater and film actor, best known for starring as the titular antagonist of the first James Bond film, Dr. No, his role as Manny Weisbord on Crime Story, and his career on Broadway...
, to whom she had been married since 1964. Wiseman himself died eight months later, on October 19.
Films
- Pearl Lang and Francisco Moncion dance performance: Black Marigolds, music by Alan HovhanessAlan HovhanessAlan Hovhaness was an Armenian-American composer.His music is accessible to the lay listener and often evokes a mood of mystery or contemplation...
. From a 1962 broadcast of CBS Sunday morning program Camera ThreeCamera ThreeCamera Three was a Sunday morning program devoted to the arts. It ran on CBS from 22 January 1956 to 21 January 1979, and moved to PBS in its final year to make way for the then-new CBS News Sunday Morning...
, directed by Nick Havinga and presented in cooperation with the New York State Education DepartmentNew York State Education DepartmentThe New York State Education Department is the state education department in New York. It is part of the University of the State of New York , one of the most complete, interconnected systems of educational services in the United States...
. - The Dybbuk for CBC
Choreographic Works
Song of Deborah, Moonsung and Windsung 1952Legend, Rites 1953
And Joy is My Witness, Nightflight 1954
Sky Chant 1957
Persephone 1958
Black Marigolds 1959
Shirah 1960
Apansionada 1961
Broken Dialogues 1962
Shore Bourne 1964
Dismembered Fable 1965
Pray for Dark Birds 1966
Tongues of Fire 1967
Piece for Brass 1969
Moonways and Dark Tides 1970
Sharjuhm 1971
At That Point in Place and Time 1973
The Possessed 1974
Prairie Steps 1975
Bach Rondelays, I Never Saw Another Butterfly, A Seder Night, Kaddish 1977
Icarus, Cantigas Ladino 1978
Notturno 1980
Gypsy Ballad, Hanele the Orphan, The Tailor's Megilleh 1981
Psalm, Song of Songs 1983
Tehillim 1984
Dance Panel #7 2000
The Time is Out of Joint 2001
External links
- http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/27/arts/dance/27lang.html?ref=obituaries Anderson, JackJack Anderson (dance critic)Jack Anderson is an American dance critic and author. Since 1978, he has been a contributor of dance reviews and other articles in The New York Times...
. "Pearl Lang, Dancer and Choreographer, Dies at 87" (The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, February 26, 2009)