Lester_Horton

Lester Horton Lester Horton was an American dancer, choreographer, and teacher and was also the founder of modern dance. He was born on January 23, 1906 and died on November 2, 1953. His interest in dance started when he observed the American Indian tribal dances in a wild western show. He studied ballet for only two years with Mme. Theo Hewes .He decided to work in California, which was considered the center of modern dance at that time. He danced in Michio Ito’s dance company, and then formed his on dance company in 1932, known as the Lester Horton dancers. In addition, he established the Lester Horton Theater, one of the first permanent theaters dedicated to modern dance in the U.S., in Los Angeles in 1964. His company gave performances at major Los Angeles venues while Horton continued to teach young dancers. He paid for his dance companies by working as a Hollywood choreographer. Later on, Horton broke up his company to start a theater academy for dance. Lester is known for his combination of dance and drama, from what many like to call “choreo-dramas”. He was involved in all aspects of creating the productions: the costumes, sets, lighting, and music as well as the scenarios and choreography. He is one of the first choreographers to insist upon racial integration in his company. Horton’s legacy is most prominent today in Ailey’s work, and Horton technique is the foundation for pieces including revelations and cry. Horton eventually invented his own dance technique, which is known as the Horton technique today. His technique incorporates Native American folk dance, Japanese arm gestures, and Javanese and Balinese isolation for the upper body, particularly the eyes, head and hands. Horton was fascinated by shapers and how dancer can move with these shapes through the space. The technique emphasizes a whole body and spatial awareness to enable unrestricted, dramatic freedom of expression. Horton technique is physically and mentally draining, working to improve a dancer’s physical limitation, developing the body as an instrument of movement. Dancers who take a Horton class can expect to grow stronger and more flexible, and to utilize their anatomy in a way never before possible. It allows for full body awareness and giant levels of expression. It is considered great career preparation because it prepares the body to excel at any form of dance. Lester Horton struggled with alcoholism and poor health, and died of a heart attack while still in his 4os. While he has been deceased for over 40 years now, his influences in the dance world continue to live on. Horton techniques are still practiced in many studio, colleges, and dance programs in the United States and around the world today. “I am sincerely trying now to create a dance technique based entirely on corrective exercises, created with knowledge of human anatomy, a technique that will correct faults and prepare a dancer of any type of dancing he may wish to follow, a technique having all basic movements which govern the actions of the body, combined with a knowledge of the origins of the movements and a sense of artistic design” Lester Horton