Sophie Maslow (March 22, 1911 – June 25, 2006) was an American choreographer, modern dancer and teacher, and founding member of

New Dance Group New Dance Group, or more casually NDG, is a performing arts organization in New York City, United States. History New Dance Group was established in 1932 by a group of artists and choreographers dedicated to social change through dance and movem ...

. She was a first cousin of the American sculptor

Leonard Baskin Leonard Baskin (August 15, 1922 – June 3, 2000) was an American sculptor, draughtsman and graphic artist, as well as founder of the Gehenna Press (1942–2000). One of America's first fine arts presses, it went on to become "one of the most imp ...

. Born in New York City in 1911 by

Russian American Russian Americans ( rus, русские американцы, r=russkiye amerikantsy, p= ˈruskʲɪje ɐmʲɪrʲɪˈkant͡sɨ) are Americans of full or partial Russian ancestry. The term can apply to recent Russian immigrants to the United Stat ...

parents, Sophie Maslow began her dance training with Blanche Talmud at the Neighborhood Playhouse School. Her teachers there included

Martha Graham Martha Graham (May 11, 1894 – April 1, 1991) was an American modern dancer and choreographer. Her style, the Graham technique, reshaped American dance and is still taught worldwide. Graham danced and taught for over seventy years. She wa ...

and

Louis Horst Louis Horst (born January 12, 1884, Kansas City, Missouri – died January 23, 1964, New York City) was a composer, and pianist. He helped to define the principles of modern dance choreographic technique, most notably the matching of choreography t ...

. She became a member of Martha Graham's Company in 1931, performing many solo roles, until 1943. She created her own dance troupe, The Sophie Maslow Dance Company and, with

Jane Dudley Jane Dudley (April 3, 1912 – September 19, 2001) was an American modern dancer, choreographer, and teacher. Inspired by her mentor, choreographer Martha Graham, Dudley helped bring her movement inspired by social ills to the American Dance Fe ...

and William Bales, established the Dudley-Maslow-Bales Trio in 1942. Ms. Maslow helped to define and establish

as a performance entity dedicated to using dance to make social and political statements. In 1948, she performed and was a faculty member at the first

American Dance Festival The American Dance Festival (ADF) under the direction of Executive Director Jodee Nimerichter hosts its main summer dance courses including Summer Dance Intensive, Pre-Professional Dance Intensive, and the Dance Professional Workshops. It also ho ...

held at Connecticut College. Maslow's choreography includes: "Dust Bowl Ballads" which depicted the Depression of the 1930s and the people of the Southwest's endurance during these droughts, "Folksay" based on Carl Sandburg's poem of the same name, "Poem," with music by Duke Ellington and words by Lawrence Ferlinghetti, and the off-Broadway musical "The Big Winner" about a poor tailor and his winning lottery ticket. In 1951, she choreographed for the

New York City Opera The New York City Opera (NYCO) is an American opera company located in Manhattan in New York City. The company has been active from 1943 through 2013 (when it filed for bankruptcy), and again since 2016 when it was revived. The opera company, du ...

(The Dybbuk). In 1952, 1955, 1956, and 1960–62, Maslow choreographed the Hannukkah Festivals held at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

. Her dances have been reconstructed and performed by

CityDance Ensemble CityDance Ensemble was founded in 1996 and was a contemporary repertory dance company based in Washington, D.C., and North Bethesda, Maryland. The company was disbanded in 2011 and the founder and Artistic Director, Paul Emerson departed. CityDa ...

, The Harkness Ballet, The Batsheva Dance Company, and The Bat-Dor Company. Sophie Maslow's voice and altruism remain an inspiration for

Arts Center. Maslow was

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

. She died on June 25, 2006 in Manhattan at age 95.Choreographer, Sophie Maslow, Dies at 95'',The New York Times'', June 26, 2006.

Selected choreographic works

*Themes from a Slavic People (1934) music:

Béla Bartók Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as H ...

*Two Songs About Lenin (1934) *May Day March (1936) *Runaway Rag (1938) *Silicosis Blues (1939) *Dust Bowl Ballads (1941) music:

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspired ...

*Sarabande (1941) *Melancholia (1941) *Exhortation (1941) *Gigue (1941) *Bourée (1941) *Folksay (1942) music: Woody Guthrie, spoken text: ''The People, Yes'' by

Carl Sandburg Carl August Sandburg (January 6, 1878 – July 22, 1967) was an American poet, biographer, journalist, and editor. He won three Pulitzer Prizes: two for his poetry and one for his biography of Abraham Lincoln. During his lifetime, Sandburg ...

*Llanto (1944) *Champion (1948) music: Samuel Matlowsky *The Village I Knew (1950) *Four Sonnets (1951) *Snow Queen (1952) *Suite:Manhattan Transfer (1953) *Israel in Dance and Song (1953) *Celebration (1954) *The Gentleman from Cracow (1955) *Anniversary (1956) *Prologue (1959) *Poem (1963) music: Duke Ellington, poem by

Lawrence Ferlinghetti Lawrence Monsanto Ferlinghetti (March 24, 1919 – February 22, 2021) was an American poet, painter, social activist, and co-founder of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers. The author of poetry, translations, fiction, theatre, art criticism, an ...

*The Dybbuk (1964) *In the Beginning (1965) *Innovacation of David (1966) *Ladino Suite (1969) *Country Music (1971) *Touch the Earth (1973) *Decathlon Etude (1976) *Voices (1980) music:

Robert Schumann Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...

*Woody Sez (1980) music: Woody Guthrie *From Louis' Book (1985) usic-bach

References

* Anderson, Jack: ''The American Dance Festival''. Duke University Press, Durham 1987.() *Chujoy, Anatole. ''The Dance Encyclopedia''. (Simon and Schuster, 1967) *McDonagh, Don ''The Complete Guide to Modern Dance''.( Doubleday and Company, 1976) *''Choreographer, Sophie Maslow, Dies at 95'',The New York Times'', June 26, 200
Link

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Maslow, Sophie 1911 births 2006 deaths 20th-century American Jews American choreographers American people of Russian-Jewish descent Modern dancers 21st-century American Jews