Gertrud Kraus ( he, גרטרוד קראוס; 5 May 1901 – 13 November 1977) was an Israeli pioneer of modern dance in Israel.

Biography

Memorial plaque on the dancer Gertrud Kraus house in Tel Aviv

Gertrud Kraus was born in 1901 in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

. Her father, Leopold Kraus, and her mother, Olga (née Neubauer), married in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

in 1899. They had four children: Robert (1900), Gertrud (1901), Margarethe (1902) and Victor (1903).Giora Manor
Jewish Women's Archive: Gertrud Kraus
/ref> Kraus studied piano at the State Academy in Vienna but after graduating decided that what she really loved was dance. She enrolled again at the State Academy, this time in the modern dance department headed by

Gertrud Bodenwieser Gertrud Bodenwieser (3 February 1890 – 10 November 1959), also known as "Gertrude", was a dancer, choreographer, dance teacher and pioneer of expressive dance. Early life The daughter of Theodore and Maria Bondi, a wealthy Jewish couple, ...

. After graduation, she joined Bodenwieser's dance company. A few months later, she opened a studio and began rehearsing solos to perform by herself. Her first independent recital took place in a large hall that she hired herself. Friends warned her of the risk involved, but she said: "If it's going to be a flop, at least it will be a spectacular one!" In the 1920s, Kraus's style was known as expressionistic dance, or German dance. In 1929 Gertrud Kraus, together with Gisa Geert, was chief assistant to

Rudolf von Laban Rudolf von Laban, also known as Rudolf Laban (German; also ''Rudolph von Laban'', hu, Lábán Rezső János Attila, Lábán Rudolf; 15 December 1879 – 1 July 1958), was an Austro-Hungarian, German and British dance artist, choreographer a ...

, director of a trade union parade during the "Vienna Festival" in Vienna. In 1930, an impresario invited her to perform in

Mandate Palestine Mandatory Palestine ( ar, فلسطين الانتدابية '; he, פָּלֶשְׂתִּינָה (א״י) ', where "E.Y." indicates ''’Eretz Yiśrā’ēl'', the Land of Israel) was a geopolitical entity established between 1920 and 1948 i ...

. Her tour was a great success and she was invited back the following season. In 1933, her company performed her work ''Die Stadt wartet'' ("The City Waits"), presenting the modern metropolis as a fascinating but dangerous place. It was based on a short story by

Maxim Gorki Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (russian: link=no, Алексе́й Макси́мович Пешко́в; – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (russian: Макси́м Го́рький, link=no), was a Russian writer and sociali ...

. On the night that

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

was elected chancellor of Germany, Kraus's company performed this piece on the open-air stage in the Burg-garden next to the Hofburg. In 1933, while she was in Prague performing for the

Zionist Congress The Zionist Congress was established in 1897 by Theodor Herzl as the supreme organ of the Zionist Organization (ZO) and its legislative authority. In 1960 the names were changed to World Zionist Congress ( he, הקונגרס הציוני העו ...

, leaders of a Czech communist cell contacted her and tried to recruit her for their purposes. The next day, she went to the Palestine Office in Prague, and applied for immigration. Kraus moved to

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the ...

in 1935, first living with friends and then renting a basement that became her studio. She formed a modern dance company affiliated with the Tel Aviv Folk Opera, which was probably the only one of its kind in the world. In 1949, she won a scholarship to travel to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

to learn the newest trends in modern dance. In 1950–1951, she founded the Israel Ballet Theatre, and became its artistic director. The company folded after a year due to financial difficulties. Until her death in 1977, Kraus devoted herself to teaching dance, as well as painting and sculpture.

Awards and commemoration

In 1968, Kraus was awarded the Israel Prize, in dance.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kraus, Gertrud Israeli female dancers Israel Prize in dancing recipients Israel Prize women recipients Israeli choreographers Dancers from Vienna Jewish emigrants from Austria to Mandatory Palestine after the Anschluss 1901 births 1977 deaths Modern dancers Jewish dancers

Biography

Awards and commemoration

See also

References