Rowan Brunt

Agnes De Mille Musical Theatre and Ballet, we thank her

25th March 2015
Grace Barnes
PAMTC1001
Student ID: 30301891

Agnes De Mille from Musical Theatre to Ballet, we thank her.

The truest expression of a people is in its dance and in its music. Bodies never lie
Agnes De Mille1
The following statement perfectly epitomizes the work and influence of the great
Agnes De Mille. Across various genres and generations she was the choreographer
that lead the way in revolutionising the way that dance was incorporated into musical
theatre. Her chorography meant musical theatre was not just a spectacle but allowed
character extension and further development of the story. Musical theatre and ballet
both owe a lot to Agnes De Mille for creating modern dance works with American
subject matter for the general public.

Agnes De Mille was born on September 18th 1905 in Harlem, New York City to a
prominent performing arts family. Her father William C. De Mille would be working
on his plays with Broadway producer David Belasco while her uncle Cecil B de Mille
was acting and producing silent films with likes of Paramount films. It was obvious
from birth that Agnes was destined to be a strong female influence in the arts due to
her family connections. Her grandmother was only the second woman in America to
open a play broker office of Broadway dealing with playwrights and writers2. From a
young age Agnes would enter the world of pretend, often at the families house in
Sullivan County she recalled, she danced by herself in the woods and felt she was
destined to be a artist3

1 Dancer to the Piper and Promenade Home: A Two Part Memoir by Agnes De
Mille, 1982, Foreword
2 Matilda Beatrice De Mille
3 Where the Wings Grow by Agnes De Mille, 1978

Originally Agnes grew up wishing to be an actress, but her parents told her she wasnt
pretty enough to enter the industry. It was a touch of fate that saw her sister Magaret
put into ballet classes to cure her flat feet, which also De Mille got into the studio for
the first time. Later while watching a performance in New York De Mille drew
inspiration from Anna Pavlova, Anna Pavlova! My life stops as I write that nameI
had witnessed the power of beauty, and in some chamber of my heart I lost forever
my irresponsibility 4. It was this moment in her youth that pushed De Mille in her
imminent career direction. After completing her degree in English from UCLA, Agnes
put her scholar days behind her and started to try to make her way onto the stage. In
1928 she made her New York debut in Stage Fright a character-based sketch based
on a Degas statue. Agnes as the young shy dancer choreographed the movement
with much accolades. David Martin the dance critic even likened the young De Milles
to Charlie Chaplin due to her unique ability to explore dramatic choreography and
sees tragedy through a lens of comedy5 It was during De Milles early
choreographic adventures she meet other dance practitioners intent on recreating the
face of American dance. Among this period in New York De Mille meet a young
Martha Graham, whom till her death in 1991 became a close friend and comrade of
Agnes.
Very soon the New York skyline wasnt enough for De Mille so she braved the travel
and crossed the Atlantic to Europe. It was here she travelled the continent performing
in Paris, Copenhagen and London, as well as studying under the tutelage of Dame
Marie Rambert of Ballet Rambert, now known as Rambert Dance Company based in
London.

4 Agnes De Mille by Judy L. Hasday, Transformed by a Ballerina pg 40

5 New York Time: Agnes De Mille, 88, Dance Visionary, is Dead. By Jack Anderson October 8th 1993

After various visits to and from America De Mille returned to America in 1940 to join
the artistic team at Ballet Theater (now known as American Ballet Theatre). De Mille
went on to create over 10 different works just for ABT, few including Three Virgins
and a Devil, Fall River Legend and Black Ritual are still performed to this day as part
of the companies repertoire. Particularly Black Ritual6 was progressive for the time as
the cast was made up completely of African American dancers, an American first in a
commercial ballet.
It was in the 1940s that De Mille produced two of her most famous works. One ballet
by the name of Rodeo (1942) and the Rogers and Hammerstein musical Oklahoma!
(1943) as the choreographer. Rodeo was a ballet born out of Ballet Russe de Monte
Carlos initial residency that they took up in America during World War II. With many
local dancers in the troupe the company employed De Mille to create a show full of
American patriotism for the modern day audience. With an original score by Aaron
Copeland, De Mille set out with this international cast incorporating ballet into the
style of the mid western cowboy, a common theme within De Mille choreography
fusing folk dance into the classical world. Agnes herself led the cast into rave reviews
showcasing her cowboy ballet to a beloving New York audience. The avant garde
love story, the unique moves and with the enigmatic De Mille at the helm the ballet
goes down in American history as the first of a truly American Ballet. It is from this
show that the picture of Agnes mid air in full cowgirl garb emerged.7
In 1943 De Mille teamed with the writing duo Rogers and Hammerstein to create
Oklahoma!, which to this date is regard the beginning of the book musical
6 American Ballet Theatre, 1940. Accessabile through ABT
websitehttp://www.abt.org/education/archive/choreographers/de_mille.html

7 Accessible through Behind Ballet: Australian

Ballet.http://www.behindballet.com/ballets-cowgirl/

worldwide. The storyline at its basic isnt overly complex in itself; our leading lady
Laurey has the choice between sweet Curly or dark mysterious Judd to take to the box
dance social night whilst set in the to be territory of Oklahoma. Though both song
writer/lyricist8 and choreographer had worked on a Broadway musical before, it was
marriage of story and music that created the perfect musical. The dream ballet itself is
not simply an interlude, but the exploration of Laureys psychological state, whilst
revealing new information (her love for Curly) and in turn furthers the characters
development. From start to finish the character was continually developed upon with
the aid of song and dance. De Mille believed that dramatic context had to influence
her movement so that the story could be portrayed accurately, for example: the patting
of the girls hand in the opening of the dream ballet is a extension of Laureys beating
heart before her wedding day. The musical went on to run for 2,212 performances,
became a Academy Award winning movie9, earned Rogers and Hammerstein a
Pulitzer Prize for the Arts10 and toured across the sea to England.
Agnes from this point went on to choreograph over 12 Broadway Musicals including:
One Touch of Venus (1943), Bloomer Girl (1944), Carousel (1945), Brigadoon
(1947), Allegro (1947), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1949), Paint Your Wagon (1951),
The Girl in Pink Tights (1954), Goldilocks (1957) and 110 in the Shade (1963). De
Mille constantly was pushing conventions within the musical theatre world by
challenging classical conventions with her use of folk dance, the Brigadoon sword
dance, Some of the dances are merely illustrations of the music11 being on of the

8 Previous success separately. Rogers with Lorenz Hart eg. Pal Joey (1940), Babes
in Arms (1937), and Hammerstein with various works such as Sigmund Romberg
with The Desert Song (1926)
9 1956 Academy Awards, Best Sound and Best Music, Scoring of a Musical
10 1944 Pulitzer Prize. Special Citation (Letter)
11 The New York Times Review of Brigadoon by Brook Atkinson.

first director/ choreographers in Allegro, whilst maintain a successful career within

the American Ballet Theater new seasons.
It was during this era in 1943 that Agnes met her husband Jonathan Prude, a concert
manager that had worked with her dear friend Martha Graham. Below is an expert
from Carol Eustons biography No Intermissions, The Life of Agnes De Mille, giving
an insight into the couples initial meeting:

At their first meeting, he was intrigued. She was enchanted. They met again
the next day - and the next, and the next. They both loved language and good
music; they played a game of listening to a string quartet and identifying the
period and composer. They made each other laugh.12

And so they began their lives together.

From all her success within show business Agnes worked tirelessly for her love of
dance in more than just the arts arena. In 1973 she founded and created the Agnes De
Mille Heritage Dance Theatre where she created work based around her core group of
dancers. It was this ensemble that became her second family and appeared in many of
work; James Mitchell, Lidjia Franklin, Gemze de Lappe, Virgina Bolser, Jean
Houloose, Dania Krupska, Joan McCracken, Bambi Lin and Mavis Ray. The Heritage
Dance Theatre unfortunately never came to full fruition due to a cerebral haemorrhage
in 1974 that occurred minutes before De Mille stepped onto stage for one of her
famous lectures Conversations of Dance, with her dance family in the wings to
showcase her repertoire.
12 No Intermissions, The Life of Agnes De Mille by Carol Euston, Little Brown and
Company, Boston 1996

This near to death experience limited De Milles workload but certainly did not
dampen her determination, going onto to choreograph five more ballets and appear in
revivals of her original choreography as a supervisor. In the coming years Agnes was
awarded the New York Citys Handel Medallion 1976 which is the highest
commendation to a New York citizen, she penned over 5 memoirs on her experience
in the ever changing dance industry as well as seven other novels/journals on the
American dance scene including a biography on her dear friend Martha Graham titled
Martha: The Life and Work of Martha. Coming into her final years it was as if De
Mille herself knew that she was ready to leave the industry yet she continued to
spread her knowledge with various university appearances tutoring young dance
majors and appearing in front of Congress three times in support of the arts. Her final
ballet The Other deals with the oppositional forces of life and death, also noted as
some of the most intricate and beautiful pas de deux choreography Agnes ever
created.

Agnes death on October 7th 1992, aged 88, was a truly sad day for not only the Great
White Way but also for dance worldwide. Agnes De Milles original work in
Oklahoma! was the springboard for choreographers to come to fully express their
characters and explore the influence dance can have on the storyline, the audience and
even what doors are opened for the dancer themselves. De Mille to me is a pioneer
that is often disregarded among younger dancers, even musical performers. Our basic
acting training tells us to act upon our natural instincts, De Mille herself did this with
the extension of gestures into dance and creating consistent character regardless of
what you sing, speak or dance on stage.

Bibliography
Agnes De Mille talks about Oklahoma YouTube video. 14:58. Posted by markie
polo September 24th. 2013. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iW35nQUZdk4
Day at Night: Agnes de Mile YouTube Video, 28:04 min. Posted by cunytv75
January 13th. 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lK1l9P8roYE
Easton, Carol. No Intermissions: The Life of Agnes De Milles
Hasday, Judy L. Agnes De Milles. Chelsea House Pub. 2003
Los Angeles Times. Dance: Class from the Old School: Choreographer Agnes de
Mille, standard- bearer for a past generation, keeps on writing, rehearsing: What
else would I do? she says. Berman, Janice. January 17th, 1993.
Los Angeles Times. Recollections: Agnes de Mille: Indomitable, Inimitable.
Bernheimer, Martin. October 9th, 1993.
Los Angeles Times. De MilleAn American Original Returns to ABT. Price, Walter.
February 28th ,1988.
Los Angeles Times. Dance Review: New Ballet by Agnes de Mille. Bernherimer,
Martin. March 17th 1988
Martha Graham- The Dancer Revealed- Ovation YouTube video. 4:50. Posted by
Ovation July 7th. 2008. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozu2M1nD1B4
New York Times. Agnes de Mille, 88, Dance Visionary, Is Dead. Anderson, Jack.
October 8th 1993
Oklahoma!, directed by Fred Zinnemann. 2005; 20th Century Fox, DVD
Sagolla, Lisa Jo. The Girl Who Fell Down: A Bibliography of Joan McCracken .
UPNE,2003.
The Independent UK. Obituary: Agnes de Mille. Vallance, Tom. October 11th 1993
Walter Prude and Agnes de Mille. TntCarden Geneology. June 1999. 1999.
http://www.tntcarden.com/tree/Foy/wfp1909.htm
Will, Max. Ok! The Story of Oklahoma. Applause Books 2002

Annotated Bibliography
Agnes De Mille talks about Oklahoma YouTube video. 14:58. Posted by
markie polo September 24th. 2013. https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=iW35nQUZdk4
This source was helpful as it was a one on one interview with De Milles herself
explaining her thought process in creating the choreography.
Day at Night: Agnes de Mile YouTube Video, 28:04 min. Posted by cunytv75
January 13th. 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lK1l9P8roYE
This video was more of a insight into Agnes herself though not overly factual. It
speaks about her books, change in dance and her impact.
Easton, Carol. No Intermissions: The Life of Agnes De Milles
And
Hasday, Judy L. Agnes De Milles. Chelsea House Pub. 2003
Both of these biographies gave great insight into De Milles childhood and her family
life, which influenced her dance career.
Los Angeles Times. Dance: Class from the Old School: Choreographer Agnes de
Mille, standard- bearer for a past generation, keeps on writing, rehearsing: What
else would I do? she says. Berman, Janice. January 17th, 1993.
Los Angeles Times. Recollections: Agnes de Mille: Indomitable, Inimitable.
Bernheimer, Martin. October 9th, 1993.
Los Angeles Times. De MilleAn American Original Returns to ABT. Price,
Walter. February 28th ,1988.
Los Angeles Times. Dance Review: New Ballet by Agnes de Mille. Bernherimer,
Martin. March 17th 1988
All these articles were not particularly helpful in my research as many of them were
other opinion pieces on De Milles life and work or they were repeated information
from other sources.
Martha Graham- The Dancer Revealed- Ovation YouTube video. 4:50. Posted
by Ovation July 7th. 2008. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozu2M1nD1B4
This video did not add to my essay really at all. It is actually Agnes speaking about
her friendship with Martha Graham which only lasted about 30 seconds. Could of
gone without.

New York Times. Agnes de Mille, 88, Dance Visionary, Is Dead. Anderson, Jack.
October 8th 1993
This source was probably the most helpful as it was current to her death and written
by a journalist in the arts arena. He accounted much of her life work though didnt
focus to much on the influence but kept it very factual.
Oklahoma!, directed by Fred Zinnemann. 2005; 20th Century Fox, DVD
I already own this film and had watched it previously, but I rewatched to see if I could
spot the choreographic moments that were unique to De Milles.
Sagolla, Lisa Jo. The Girl Who Fell Down: A Bibliography of Joan McCracken .
UPNE,2003.
This text I found through a database as it made reference to both De Milles and
Rogers & Hammerstein. It was from this source that I found other references to seek
out.
The Independent UK. Obituary: Agnes de Mille. Vallance, Tom. October 11th
1993
I used this obituary as a way to back up other facts I found on other websites. As there
were some times where I would two different dates that I needed confirming.
Walter Prude and Agnes de Mille. TntCarden Geneology. June 1999. 1999.
http://www.tntcarden.com/tree/Foy/wfp1909.htm
I read this book as an attempt to find out more about her relationship with husband.
There was never much mention of him in the articles or obituaries I read so I took to
find further research.
Will, Max. Ok! The Story of Oklahoma. Applause Books 2002
I did not read into this source to much. I had already found much of my information
regarding the creation of Oklahoma! from the interviews where Agnes spoke on her
creative process. The book was more of a focus of Rogers and Hammerstein.