Active Years: 1878-1927

Position: American dancer and choreographer.

Career Highlights: Duncan’s first major piece and the one which laid out many of the principles she would espouse during the rest of her career was called The Dance of the Future. The dance-lecture piece won wide popularity and launched her career.

Career Totals: One of Duncan’s first ballets was Orpheus, created in 1902, and her last was The Three Graces in 1928. Duncan performed The Dance of the Future during the first decade of this century. The success of this work caused her to open two dance schools, one in Grunewald and one in Moscow, from which her six proteges came.

Scouting Report: Duncan worked in Chicago and New York under Augustin Daly and then set out for Europe. In her early career, she worked in Greek revivalist style, but later she veered towards classical and romantic tendencies. She revolutionized the art of classical dancing (tutu ballets) by freeing the confines of tradition, creating a flowing emotional experience. Her primary work was as a concert dancer, but she became famous largely as a personality. Today it seems that Duncan herself is of more interest than her work within the world of dance.

Teammates and Contemporaries: It is unclear whether Duncan studied under Marietta Bonfanti in New York or Katti Lanner in London, or perhaps under both. Her work with Augustin Daly is known. She was married to dancer and choreographer Jose Limon.

Fun Statistic: Those who join the gossip mill on the subject of dance or simply scandal refer to Duncan exclusively by her first name, Isadora.